The reality of living while Black is not knowing if you will make it home from any encounter with law enforcement.
Day and night in Baton Rouge. Spent the evening at Southern University listening to a presentation on research about youth organizing, Black Lives Matter, Movement for Black Lives, Dreamers, Standing Rock and scholarly recommendations to overcome the generational divide in leadership.
The person sitting next to me shows me the news about MSU president's decision. Earlier today the person predicted it would happen before the end of 2018. I offer no comment or reaction.
As we are on the bus back to the hotel a dozen police cars chase a truck into a pole. A young Black woman is dragged out from the passenger seat and cuffed. The driver appears to be a Black male and is slumped over the steering wheel, head through the windshield. The police bring dogs to immediately search the vehicle before checking on the man.
The bus continues on its route and conversations resume. I am sobbing. The man sitting next to me decides to walk back to the scene. I join him because we know how this works. We exchange names in the 3rd block.
We arrive 15 minutes later at the same time as EMS. I start recording on my phone. They take the young woman out of the police car and start treating her injuries in full view. The man is nowhere to be seen but police say he is alive.
The man I am with walks over and offers to pray with the police. I keep my distance and record because we know how this works. They are defensive and decline because it is a "crime scene." He returns and we pray for the injured and their families.
I am in my room now. Safe but not quite sound. My heart and head are hurting. Disappointed. Determined. #BlackLivesMatter