And to think how the mothers of these young boys worry when they are out too long and they begin to imagine the worst. I have seen the bonding between black mothers over this thought as well as the connection between the fathers. This violence needs to come to light to all of us.

And it mad my think about how vulnerable ALL women feel from time to time when they are out alone. How I will not walk across a parking lot after dark and I ask friends to watch me get to my front door when they drop me off. These days, it is more about purse snatching than an attack but these concerns have always been somewhere in  my mind. I served on the Board of a rape crisis center, so perhaps that explains it.

But white males do not have this burden. I am not saying that they should or that it is their fault that these circumstances exist. But it does make their lives different and they do not even realize it. Safety is very important, it is the basis of confidence.