RIP, #SethConradRich:

“A 27-year-old Democratic National Committee staffer has died after being shot multiple times in the back in Washington, D.C. Seth Rich, director of voter expansion for the DNC, was gunned down on a quiet residential street at around 4.20am on Sunday. He was found conscious and breathing by police who had been patrolling the area and heard gunshots. Rich was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead at 5.57am. … He grew up in Omaha, where his family played a strong role in the Beth El Synagogue. His grandfather was a founding member of the synagogue and his father was head of the congregation until recently. Rich studied Hebrew at the synagogue, and traveled to Israel two years ago. His teacher paid tribute to Rich on Facebook, calling him ‘a dynamic young man who loved his work at the DNC.’ … Donna Brazile, Vice Chair of the DNC, wrote a four-part statement on Twitter on Monday. ‘Seth was on the front lines for voting rights. Man fatally shot in D.C. was a Democratic National Committee staffer,’ she wrote. She added: ‘Seth was a young man on a mission. He believed in the right to vote and took a position to help expand voter protection. Grieving. ‘Remember his name and add him to the rolls of justice. #SethConradRich. He lived to make a difference. He believed in voting rights. ‘The Democratic National Committee is in deep mourning. We loss [sic] a young man who dedicated his life to voting rights and voter expansion.’

If we had known each other in life, you would have probably called me a “racist.” You would have likely called me an “anti-Semite” too. I bet you would have disputed the existence of the force we have labeled the “Black Undertow” and dismissed its presence in Washington, DC as a “false narrative” propagated by White Nationalists on the internet.

It seems like it was only a year ago that we buried Kevin Sutherland after he was slashed to death on the Washington Metro. He, too, was opposed to gun violence. He, too, wanted to make the world a better place. He, too, was a Democratic operative.

I can’t help but wonder: what was the last thing that went through your mind while you bled to death after being fatally shot in your own neighborhood? Did you explain to your attacker – let’s not kid ourselves, he was a black male – that you were just on Facebook pleading with people to stop hating each other? Did you tell him about all the work you had done for the Democratic Party on behalf of black voting rights? As your consciousness ebbed from this world, were your last thoughts about racial stereotypes or gun violence?

RIP Seth Rich.

A gun would have come in handy Sunday night. Amirite?