As I watched The Mothers of the Movement on the stage of the DNC, the word that came to mind was “pain.” So much pain. For my own personal reasons, I couldn’t watch much of their presentation. It was too raw for me and I needed to be able to watch the rest of the program.
There’s not enough discussion about the consequences of unnecessary police killings and how it impacts the lives of the families and friends of those taken too soon. The pain, the heartache, the grief one feels as one tries to process the fact that a loved one is gone and gone forever. The daily struggle to cope with the new reality of a life to be lived without the presence of those you loved and who have loved you. To be sure, the families of cops killed on the job also experience the unthinkable pain. But there is one huge difference: Those who kill law-enforcement officers pay for their crimes. The overwhelming majority of times within minutes of carrying out their murderous acts. Family and friends of those killed by police will have to deal not only with the death of their loved ones but with the sure knowledge that no one will be held accountable. For example, Freddie Gray’s death was ruled a homicide by the government coroner, but yet, nobody will serve a day in prison for killing that young man. His life, it seems, did not matter. Pain compounded.
Volunteer Now for Our Curse-a-Thon
Mark Twain: “Under certain circumstances, profanity provides a relief denied even to prayer."
It turns out that cursing has enormous mental, emotional, and physical value. Scientists have published studies purporting to show that cursing can be beneficial to one's health.
Bad language could be good for you, a new study shows. For the first time, psychologists have found that swearing may serve an important function in relieving pain.
In addition to our Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act, our Good Samaritan Law, and our FOIA campaign, we now launch another ambitious project. This time, we invite you to cuss up a blue storm against blue violence. Cuss away your pain. Cuss for an end to police violence against unarmed citizens. Cuss for sophistication in our standard operation procedures. Cuss for patience and empathy. Cuss to get our message out.
CURSE-A-THON GOALS STATEMENT
Support the Dream Defenders wants to allow people to grieve. To rant. To rave. To curse. We need to do all of the above for the unnecessary loss of life that we have seen. We've all watched the videos, and we want to cry out. Let us, together, bring as much attention to this problem as we can, even if it requires cursing on the internet. We also want to implement The Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act, which would grant individuals the power to become a one-woman or one-man Department of Justice, allowing them to sue an entire police jurisdiction. We also want to promote any good ideas that may aid us in stopping the violence, which is just the ugly tip of a very nasty iceberg for POC. We want to see the MBOPRA placed on the ballot in California, signed into law by the President of the United States and adopted as a resolution by the NAACP. And you can help us by cursing on the internet! It's that simple.
We embark on this project not because we are frivolous; not because we take juvenile delight in the freedom to utter forbidden words in the presence of authority figures, or to show our disdain for polite society. No, this is so much more. This is cursing with a purpose and for worthy causes.
In addition to the hope of relieving some of our pain, we hope that our plan will serve to focus attention on the need for bold, decisive action. To introduce our Michael Brown Over-Police Rights Act and to get support for our California Ballot Initiative.
CURSE-A-THON GUIDELINES
Support the Dream Defenders will never promote violence or calls for violence. On the contrary, that's what we want to stop. Please grieve, curse, rant and rave, but do not call for violence. Additionally, racist remarks will be reported to Twitter @reportracism. We want everyone to have some time to fucking vent, and that fucking time is now!
Come join us.