There are no guarantees in life, yet we still have expectations. We expect our elected leaders to behave selflessly so they can keep the American people in mind first.
But when politicians ignore our humanity in pursuit of their own agenda, the American people tend to suffer the consequences, even with their lives.
Much like everyone else, I watched as America entered a phase of demoralization as they lost faith in institutions of immense importance and questioned the intentions of their neighbors. 2020 was not only a year to decide who our next president would be but also to determine what kind of society we want to maintain.
The elite decided that the safety of the American people is subject to political expedience. Our humanity no longer mattered.
During the nationwide riots, small business owners and residents pleaded for enforcement, and yet police officers were ordered to stand down. In the aftermath, the American people suffered the consequences with their livelihoods and, for some, their lives while our politicians were left mostly unscathed.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show the murder rate between 2019 and 2020 increased by an astonishing 30%, and I place some of the blame on many of our supposed leaders.
Once Derek Chauvin became public enemy No. 1, city governments used his actions as an officer as the impetus to begin defunding police departments to appease activists instead of the residents who depend on their presence. Those efforts contributed to the rise in deaths — but not equally.
As the homicide rate increased by 30% across the board, demographically, the homicide rate for black Americans increased by a dramatic 34%, higher than any other racial demographic. White Americans saw a 19% increase and Hispanic Americans 7%.
But, as the Manhattan Institute’s Christos Makridis and Robert VerBruggen note, “since the black homicide rate was already many times higher than the white one, this translated into 8 additional black deaths for every 100,000 population” while “the death rate for whites rose by only 0.5 per 100,000.”
With these numbers, it is understandable why Pew Research recently found that the most important issue for black Americans was related to violence and crime.
While politicians were marching in arms with protesters claiming to care about black lives, they were actively making their lives worse. For black Americans who live in dangerous neighborhoods, removing the police has made them even more unsafe and has emboldened the criminal element that resides alongside the innocent.
If everyone believes that we are in constant danger by the very people we need the support of, then no one will care when mayors across the nation remove them from street corners. No one will care when the few activists speak for the many whose safety is at risk.
A mind virus has spread across our nation — that the death of the innocent is perfectly fine so long as police are demonized. Our humanity is trivial at best; and it shows.
Adam Coleman is the author of “Black Victim To Black Victor” and founder of Wrong Speak Publishing.