The reality we live in dictates that one of us to be blamed for a committed hate crime, when the truth of the matter is that we are all responsible in one way or another. Our world, our communities and our families must nurture children and infuse them with strong moral principles so that they embrace their humanity and become collaborative and loving citizens. Dysfunction must be seen as a disease of the psyche and must be addressed by the whole community for man’s essence is goodness and not evil. Following the New Zealand shooting, I was overcome by grief. My heart was broken over the loss of my Muslim brothers and sisters and their grieving families. I share with you a poem that flowed out of my grief in response to the shooting.

hey white man
one of us is kind and the other is evil
look into the mirror and gaze through your eyes, what do you see?
the world has turned upside down, just because you distinguished yourself
you made yourself superior to the ‘other’
you made yourself more important, where others seemed to lack value.

you are not the hero, nor you are humanity’s savior.

but why did you leave your humanness wrapped up in a blanket bleeding in a dark closet?

a grieving mother knows best
why did you let go of your inner truth?
a heartbroken father would know best
how did you end up here?
who sold you this lie?
for you are black, brown, olive skinned, yellow and white
you are all of us in oneness as we are created equal by one God
you shall be asked and we
shall be redeemed
you shall bow in humility for all the dread you feel today will be held against you in the presence of God
your blue eyes are like ice on a high mountain top; cold and rigid, unable to see the webs that connect us,

but your heart beats warmth and truth
open up to the reality around you
open up to the humanity inside of you
be true and be real
break the ice and see for the first time in your life that we are the mothers, daughters, wives, fathers, sons and husbands of the world wanting to sing a song, the song of humanity blessed by Mother Earth.

but we can’t do that without you, will you come?

the Earth shall feast when you do.