Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

To The Editor:

Everywhere I go these days I see signs and T-shirts that say “Black Lives Matter,” and they certainly do. I agree 100% but what you don’t see is “All Lives Matter,” and I certainly agree with that.

I also think that perhaps there should be some signs saying “Law-Abiding Citizens also matter,” And how about the unborn? Don’t they deserve a life?

I sincerely regret that there have been some deaths recently by policemen doing the job that we pay them to do but, has anyone looked at what the deceased were doing when the police officers attempted to arrest them? From what I understand they were all breaking the law. The gentleman from “I can’t breathe” (Geroge Floyd) had a bad heart condition, was a drug addict, and the first autopsy showed that he died of a heart condition. Certain people didn’t accept that, and had one done that suited their purpose.

I am not a racist and have many, many friends of color. We are all Americans and some are coincidently white, some coincidently black, and some coincidently other colors. But we’re all Americans and I’m proud of every friend that I have, regardless of skin color. We are all Americans. Just born of different parents.

If our pipsqueak governor and the mayor of Richmond really want to do something to improve conditions in the state of Virginia, why don’t they start with Richmond and the constant, daily shootings in Richmond? I know why, because they can’t change the culture of those involved.

Let’s get real folks. Tearing down or removing statues of past heroes can’t change history. It is what it was. As bad as it was, it is still the history.

Why doesn’t everyone just move forward and build a better future, a brighter America and be proud of our actions today?

Rev. Furman Joye

Prospect