My neighbors were upset and misinformed about the peace rallies Saturday night.

Stating they didn't understand why there has not been such an outcry for the local black youths that have been killed.They viewed these rallies as stirring up trouble. I was a little surprised by their remarks since both couples (one white and one a mixed asian and white gay couple) are D's who support and voted for Obama. I was really upset by some of their remarks and this was my response to what I viewed as RW talk.

The point of these rallies are to open a dialog so that we might actually protect all our youth against violence. It is time we also addressed the very real problem of racism and profiling of people of color. Also the inequities they face regarding the law. These rallies are not unlike rallies and petitions that lead to protections and laws for our children in other cases that gained the publics attention. Here are a a few I pointed out to my neighbors. The Amber alert, Amber Hagerman was not the first nor the last child to be abducted and murdered. Megan's Law was put into place because Megan Kanka's story got the publics attention also not the first child to be abducted by a known pedophile. Matthew Shepard was not the first gay youth to be murdered simply because he was gay. This heartbreaking story got the publics attention and not only helped to enact laws against hate crimes it forced the public to admit that hate crimes existed. Not all victims stories get attention but that does not mean we should ignore the stories that do and use them to enact needed protections for the safety of our children.

My question to all those that claim to be D's and are upset about the Martin peace and healing rallies. Did you have the same outrage for Amber, Megan and Matthew (I know the RWingers were outraged in regards to Matthew).