You may be my friend in real life. You might just be someone who knew me when I was a child. Maybe we grew up together and we follow each others life through social media. You see pictures of my child and I get to watch as you navigate your way through life. You see my status messages that talk about how my family and I just took our 3 year old to the park or that my husband was just promoted at work. Maybe you witness a birth announcement or the death of a family member as you look upon my life via a social media platform. Either way, I have, for some reason or another, chosen to allow you to be a part of it.

You know I’m a police wife or a police husband. Maybe I’m even an officer and we’re friends outside of my job. You may know that I’m married, have X amount of kids, and enjoy riding my motorcycle on the weekend. You also know that you’re tired of me posting police related articles. Hell, you may have even hidden me by now. What’s happening to my family in law enforcement doesn’t apply to you, so why would you follow it?

I get it. I get tired of looking at the pictures of whatever people are about to eat for dinner. I get tired of knowing what Disney Princess you would have been or what song played on the day that you were born. Social Media can be so intrusive on what we want and don’t want to know about each other. But, here’s what I need you to understand, I need you to hear me. I need you plug in, open your eyes, and raise your voices. Something major is happening in our country and even though mainstream media isn’t showing you how intense it really is, that doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

That’s why we can’t stop talking about it. That’s why we won’t stop sharing. I understand that hearing about tragedy all the time is hard on the soul. Trust us. We know. We are waking up to new tragedy…every….single….day. We are being ambushed, hunted, and drug through the unfactual statements of people who want to see us fall. I’ll even go one step further. They want to see us die.

In the last month, there have been over 20 officer involved attacks and 10 deaths in the month of March alone. Three of them were murdered and we all know that number could have easily been higher had the failed attempts been successful. If that doesn’t terrify you, it should. If that doesn’t concern you for our safety, we shouldn’t be friends. If this is a lighthearted subject that you can dismiss in the blink of an eye, check the balance of your morality account. You just might be bankrupt.

We won’t stop talking about it. We need you to talk about it, too. We need you to come out from the comfort of your own homes and let us hear your voices. Stand with us, mourn with us, and pray with us. There’s an epidemic taking place in the United States. There is a war on police. We have to call it what it is. People who oppose us are calling it a “revolution.” I call it murder.

And, don’t refute this by telling me a story about a bad police officer. We know they exist. We know that they are out there. But, just like I don’t believe every banker is embezzling money or that every teacher is trying to date their students, I ask you to extend us the same courtesy of not overgeneralizing us. It’s a dangerous game to play when you refuse to hold an individual accountable and start labeling honest, honorable men and women as murderers. Can you imagine saving the life of a child or a battered woman from the hands of her spouse, coming home and kissing your family goodnight, and then turning on the news to see how your entire occupation is being portrayed as uniformed criminals? I can.

If you can’t understand why it’s difficult to know that not only are the officers being hunted, people are rewarding people to stalk, scare, rape, and kill their family members. If you’ve ever looked into the eyes of my child on Facebook, that’s who their talking about. If you need a face to put with the threat, just imagine it being a little child who is guilty of one thing; having a parent who serves his community. If you can still be okay with what’s happening out there, please do me a favor and remove yourself from all platforms of my life.

Bottom line: if the news isn’t going to report our story, we will report them ourselves. Our officers are dying. Officers of all races and ages are being targeted. After a whole movement of people telling us who’s life matters, will you speak up and say that ours does, too? For those of you who relentlessly support us, stand with us, and encourage us, we have more gratitude in our hearts for you than you could ever imagine. One kind deed goes a really long way. It’s children like Savannah, the little girl who sent out thousands of thank you letters to police officers, that change a persons’ entire day. I’d even go as far to say that she has changed people’s entire lives. It’s people like Jesse, the FedEx guy, who encouraged an entire community with one kind letter on the door of an officer. Help them make a difference.

I’m sorry if the tone of this post is too angry but, I am just that. I am angry. I’m tired of watching my police family bury their brothers and sisters. I’m tired of one more wife being handed a flag. Let’s not forget who the real heroes are. They are the ones running into the face of danger while the rest of us are running away. They are worthy of my voice.

We won’t be silent. Please don’t be silent with us.