America has woken up this morning to the latest tragedy sparked by racial hatred – the senseless murder of nine people meeting at a church in Charleston, SC. Pastor Clementa Pickney and eight parishioners were taking part in a bible study when they were gunned down by a lone, white gunman. With the recent events in Ferguson, Baltimore and now Charleston, there will be continued discussions on the deterioration of race relations in this country. While these conversations are important, I think a dialogue should occur regarding the state of hopelessness in our urban areas.
People are driven by good and bad behavior. Hate, in my opinion, is a natural by-product of fear. Fear of loss or fear of someone gaining at your expense. In urban areas such as Charleston and Baltimore, we have witnessed the manifestation of hopelessness act out in extremely violent ways. People who have lost hope and are living in close proximity (in urban areas) to their perceived enemy have and will continue to behave violently.
Last week, in Baltimore County, Senator Rand Paul spoke about issues that face people living in urban areas. I believe our cities are going to get worse before they get better. Treating tragic events like the mass murder in Charleston as an isolated incident is short-sighted and dangerous. We need strong leadership from the White House who will make healing the systemic problems in our cities a priority. The current occupant has neither shown the will or the nerve to take a stand for racial reconciliation.
In 1988, President Reagan described American exceptionalism as a “city on the hill.” Thirty years later, our cities are burning and its people are dying. In the past, we have had programs entitled the War on Poverty, the War on Drugs and even a War on Terror. Today, we need to initiate a War for Peace in our communities and our hearts.
Faculty, Department of Political Science, Towson University. Graduate from Liberty University Seminary.