Carnage must stop

There is an uproar in the land. An unarmed black man is deprived of his life in full view, in broad daylight, before the eyes of the nation, before the eyes of the world. Eric Garner – suffering from asthma, diabetes and obesity – has become one more tragic statistic. Once again, there is no indictment. How could this happen in our democracy, which stands for law, order and equal justice?

Today it happened to a disabled black man, and tomorrow it can happen to me, a white woman, who was born outside America. I don’t want to live in fear of a police officer. I want to be able to trust him or her, knowing he or she is my friend and protector, and a neighborhood champion and hero.

The carnage has to stop. Americans white, black and brown are calling for a stop to the injustice we are witnessing. We will do it peacefully, without violence, looting or burning. We will be united in the expectation that we can live in peace, with respect toward one another, in a nation of law and order, with equal justice before the law.

Halina Slobodow

Spokane