I was down at the lakefront yesterday and I saw a Black man wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt. I really wanted to go up to him and say, “Yes, Black lives do matter.” It made me think of why someone needs to wear a shirt saying their life matters. It seems so backwards that we live in a society where people have to specify that a part of the human race matters. As a white person, I see this as insulting that Black people have to show me that they matter, that they are worthwhile, that their lives are not dispensable. I recently learned that some people think the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ is somewhat controversial. I was very surprised to learn this. I think as both Alex and I have said previously, we see continually that Black lives don’t matter in our neighborhood daily. When a child grows up in a home where a landlord hasn’t done ANYTHING in 10 years, it shows that child that their life doesn’t matter. When the city is too overloaded with foreclosed homes that they only mow grass on an abandoned home once every 2 months, it shows those neighbors that their lives don’t matter. When an entire area is subjected as “bad” it shows that their lives don’t matter. I think every white person should be doing their part and showing Black lives that they matter because in Milwaukee, if you go down Center or North Ave from the East Side to Wauwatosa, you will clearly see who is shown that they matter.