Have You Seen Luis Velez?

by Catherine Ryan Hyde

“Especially since you came and knocked on my door. Most people don’t. Most people hurry by, and the more I try to reach out, the faster they hurry.

‘You are not my family or my friend, you are not my little tribe. You are a them, you are not an us.’

But I do think some of us have experiences that wake us up—when we see the horror that eventually comes of such judgments, or when we find ourselves on the wrong end of them, and feel how powerful that hate can grow to become. It can shake you to the very core of your being.

And here is the thing about experiences that wake you up, Raymond: You try to get back to sleep, but it’s easier said than done. Once you’re awake, you’re awake. Good luck hitting the snooze button, my friend.”

see my privilege because I have lived both with it and without it. The jury did not even see. They did not even see, Raymond. What can you do with a world where people do not even see?”

The world is a tough place, my friend. I’m not ready to change my mind about that. And yet we’re called upon to be grateful that we’re in it. That seems to be our challenge.”