# All Lives Matter

We said "stop killing us," and your response was "but..."

Continuing to push your "all lives matter" is just a punch in the gut.

This isn't just another analogy about how ridiculous & insensitive you seem.

I'm not disagreeing with the statement, just questioning how much of it you really mean.

MILITARY LIVES MATTER

Surely that's what you'd never want to end troops

to be expendable pawns in unjustified wars

You'd never support attacks in foreign countries

that might kill civilians because their lives matter too

You're probably busy looking for alternative solutions

that stop the fighting and endless cycles of conflict

Surely you've pushed for reforms

to support the mental health of veterans who served

When you found out 20 veterans a day commit suicide,

you must have been sad, right?

You must have donated a lot of money to Given an Hour

and demanded increased Veterans' Affairs oversight.

WOMEN AND CHILDREN'S LIVES MATTER

Surely that's why when you protest abortion, you make sure to also promote

preventative programs and comprehensive sex ed

And you're pro-life, not just pro-birth, so you want to make sure

all children born have every advantage throughout their lives

You're probably busy looking for reasonable gun reform laws

to at least attempt to reduce all the people being massacred

Surely you've pushed for your legislators to extend

the Violence Against Women act and close the boyfriend loop

When you found out 4 women a day are killed by their partners,

5x more likely if they have firearms, you must have been mad, right?

You must have marched with the March for Our Lives children

and gone to D.C. in 2017 to listen to women's perspectives and insight.

POOR PEOPLE'S LIVES MATTER

Surely that's why you'd never vote to reduce funding to beneficial programs

just because it would raise your taxes

You care so much about their lives that you push hard

for affordable access to medications and care through socialized medicine

You're probably busy looking for ways to eliminate poverty

and be sure everyone has post-secondary education and living wages

Surely you'd do anything to increase mental health services and

drug addiction treatments to decrease the rates of deaths of despair

When you found out the poorest here have 15 year shorter life expectancies

than the richest, you must have been irate, right?

You must have lobbied for universal healthcare,

gone to your representatives, and written moving speeches to recite.

ELDERLY, HOMELESS, AND IMMUNOCOMPROMISED LIVES MATTER

Surely that's why you'd never go into public areas

and disregard recommendations designed to keep other people safe

You are about people's lives so much (certainly more than the economy)

that you encourage them to take as long as they need to feel secure

You'd never demand that they go back to work to serve you

just because you're being inconvenienced if they don't

Surely you'd trust the professionals and give up your comfort

without hesitation so we don't lose lives unnecessarily

When you found out that 1/3 of Coronavirus deaths have been the homeless,

you must have been really depressed, right?

You must have followed every guideline to keep everyone safe

because you were so overcome with empathy for their plight.

LGBTQ LIVES MATTER

Surely that's why you go out of your way to show them love

and encouragement and make sure not to exclude them

You'd never support anything less than equal rights for them

because they're blessed human beings whose lives matter too

You're probably busy searching for how to put an immediate stop

to the rapid increase in anti-gay and anti-transgender hate crimes

Surely you're calling for a ban on hiring and housing and health

discrimination and the harmful practice of conversion therapy

When you found out that they are 3x more likely to commit suicide,

you must have been brokenhearted, right?

You must have volunteered for The Trevor Project or the oSTEM line

or maybe even started your own support website.

BLACK LIVES MATTER

Surely you'd never dismiss this assertion or deflect

by bringing up other issues or trying to undermine the movement

You care so much about their lives that you want to examine yourself

and your country's true history and their place in it

You're probably busy looking for ways to best investigate, address,

and eliminate any systematic racism or oppression

Surely you'd be alarmed that Blacks represent 24% of COVID deaths

and police killings when they're 13% of the U.S. population

When you found out they're 40% more likely to be the victims of

the most violent hate crimes, you must have been appalled, right?

You must have filled your yard with BLM signs, and when you've reflected

on your past microaggressions, your heart was so contrite.

BROWN LIVES MATTER

Surely you'd never suggest turning people away to a life of poverty

or a likely death because you consider them a burden

You obviously support comprehensive immigration reform

and reasonable quotas for refugees from all around the world

You're probably busy working with tribal leaders to address

the 50% higher death rate and 20% higher suicide rates for natives.

Surely you'd question why hate crimes against Latinos are up 48%

from 5 years ago and they're one of the highest targets

When you found out that 200 ICE detainees died in custody and

nearly 3000 children were lost track of, you were disgusted, right?

You must have set up fundraisers for RAICES and ACLU

when you saw them in cages and the inhumane conditions came to light.

ASIAN LIVES MATTER

Surely you'd never ignore a leader who has carried out brutal executions

and assassinations of anyone who opposes him

You'd definitely consider him a horrible terrorist who needs to be stopped

no matter how much he buddied up with your commander

You're probably busy condemning ignorant tweets from people

who can't differentiate between China and U.S. Chinatowns

Surely you're aware of the Chinese Exclusion Act and Japanese internment

and you'd never ask any Asian-Americans where they're *really* from

When you found out 1100 Asian-Americans have been attacked

just during the COVID crisis, you must have been offended, right?

You must have spoken out against racist leaders using terms like

"Chinese Virus" or "Wuhan Flu" because you knew the violence it'd incite.

MUSLIM LIVES, JEWISH LIVES, FOREIGN LIVES ALL MATTER

Surely you'd never lump all Muslims together and consider them all

dangerous terrorists because of a small radical faction

You definitely wouldn't ban them from entering the country

while not acknowledging that the vast majority of terrorist acts here

are committed by white American

You're probably busy helping the rabbis clean up and repairing

the synagogues after the recent surge in violent anti-Semitic attacks

Surely you've never ignored starvation and pandemics outside the U.S. or

the genocides currently happening in Kashmir, Turkey, Yemen, Burundi,

Central African Republic, Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, Syria

or the Yazidi and Rohingya people because their lives matter a lot to you

When you found out there were 1600 hate crimes against Muslims

and over 2000 against Jews in the U.S. in one year,

you must have been dismayed, right?

You must have started numerous petitions and immediately found

the nearest ADL and Sentinel Project branches to join the fight.

POLICE AND CIVILIAN LIVES MATTER

Surely you've never said "blue lives matter" or argued that "police use

excessive force on white people too" as if it helps your case

You'd be just as mad that they're harming any of the citizens they've sworn

to protect and serve as you are that 48 died in the line of duty last year

You're probably busy figuring out how to reform policing policies and

improve community relations while saving billions from

settling excessive force lawsuits and reducing as many killings as possible

Surely you'd never launch a smear campaign against the victim

in an attempt to justify and write off their deaths

When you found out that police killed 1100 citizens last year,

significantly higher than any other first world Western country,

you were enraged, right?

You must have protested with the names of Stephon Clark, George Floyd,

and Michael Brown on your lips as you demanded that they indict.

PRISONERS' LIVES MATTER

Surely you'd never support the death penalty because it simply wouldn't

make sense to kill someone in order to prove that killing someone is wrong

You'd be concerned that it wastes more tax dollars than a life sentence, that

it's unequally applied, and that it's proven not to be a deterrent to crime

You're probably busy researching cases for Innocence Project or NCADP

to save as many prisoners' lives as you can because they matter too

Surely you never watched a televised execution and cheered, and you

can't believe that 28 states still have this barbaric practice

When you found out 1 in 11 people on death row have been exonerated

in the past few decades, you must have been horrified, right?

You must have sent letters to your representatives begging them to abolish

the death penalty and asked your church to join you

in praying that they might.

ALL LIVES MATTER

Surely you've never stood by and allowed leaders to speak words

that promote hatred and encourage violence

You'd never leave that unchecked without speaking out against it,

and you'd certainly not make excuses or justify it

You're probably busy trying to bring politicians together

from across the aisle to really address major concerns

Surely you'd never look the other way when lives are being lost

because it's not convenient, it's not economical, it doesn't fit your politics

When you found out that about 1 out of 3 worldwide deaths are preventable,

you were filled with a righteous anger, right?

You must have risen up and called for sweeping changes, massive overhauls,

and preached love for everyone and voted for someone who could unite.

If all lives really matter to you, there are a whole lot of things--

protesting, petitions, voting, volunteering, donating--

that you can actually do

You'd be speaking out for EVERYONE, praying for even those you don't like,

and demanding we all do better if all lives mattered to you

You'd be fighting for real progress and protections for people

instead of trolling social media, waving your Confederate flags,

and throwing a fit

In the meantime, change your hashtag to something more fitting like

#TheLivesILikeMatter

and miss me with your "all lives matter" line until you start acting like it