- Thich Nhat Hanh, peace activist, teacher, author, poet
It has been less than a month since the horrible mass shooting of 49 men and women in Orlando, Florida. A week ago innocent citizens in Bangladesh, Turkey, Syria and Iraq were senselessly slaughtered. Within a matter of days Americans have witnessed the murder of two African-American men, Alton Sterling and Philando Castile followed by the brutal slaying of five Dallas police officers: Lorne Ahrens, Michael Smith, Michael Krol, Patrick Zamarripa and Brent Thompson- moments after participating in a peaceful protest march.
Many people are mourning in silence choosing to privately process such terribly tragic and purposeless acts of violence. Please, remember that not all silence is dismissive of pain and suffering. Silence can be a true act of deliberate stillness- a contemplative centering so that effective actions and discussions will be taken. Wounds fail to heal without our quiet reflection and we must honor the varying ways we grieve. Sending peace and love to those who are hurting in the United States and to those experiencing deep sorrow around our world.
#BlackLivesMatter, #AltonSterling, #PhilandoCastile, #Dallas, #DPD #Orlando, #Bangladesh, #Istanbul, #Syria, #Iraq, #PEACE #NICE #BatonRouge #Munich
