Larry Bumgardner: A matter of justice

The Dec. 30 letter “Maleah’s meaning” attacking the “black lives matter” movement and emphasizing the loss of Maleah’s life to gunfire in Chapel Hill was depressing to read. The writer thinks that you can’t complain of one injustice when your community has other injustices. He believes that disrupting businesses or the Interstate is out of bounds.

I am curious what people who have no voice can do to get justice. They live in a system that attacks them on almost every front of their lives. People who have no knowledge of these issues attack their actions. Note that the men arrested in this shooting are charged with first degree murder. This is a political charge. First degree clearly does not apply. Public outrage has no part in the administration of justice.

Drug use is pretty consistent across all walks of life in the U.S., but black and brown people are serving a disproportionate time.

The writer needs to examine a range of issues that have not changed much since slavery ended. Does the “black lives matter” movement have a case? I think so.

This story was originally published December 30, 2015 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Larry Bumgardner: A matter of justice."