TNM Speaks Out - In Support of Ralph Yarl

A note from Adam Barlow-Thompson, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Neighboring Movement.

For several years now, I have made it a regular practice to knock on front doors within my neighborhood. I’ve been on hundreds of front porches, and besides a few grumpy folks, it generally has been a good experience. I couldn’t help thinking about knocking on all those doors when I saw the news about Ralph Yarl. This black teenager accidentally went to the wrong street and, after ringing the doorbell, was shot by the homeowner, an 84-year-old white man. 

I’ve knocked on hundreds of doors in my neighborhood and never once feared for my safety. 

This event, and one like it, where a homeowner killed a young woman after she and her friends attempted to turn around in a driveway, leaves us asking the age-old question, “Why?” 

Why do these things keep happening?

The events in Kansas City were preceded by shootings in Tennessee, Alabama, and probably most states in our country.  These tragedies highlight a stark reality: we live in a culture of fear and scarcity. In this culture, we are taught to fear our neighbors, especially if their skin is black or brown, especially if their gender is nonconforming, especially if they are not like me. 

The culture of fear can only exist when it is tied to systematic injustice. Folks like me who knock on doors without fear have been tricked into perpetuating this culture. We’ve been taught as long as my safety is not in danger, the best I can do is to maintain the status quo. Well, friends, this is a lie. Allowing justice to enter the system creates liberation for ALL! We must call for justice which can pave the way for an alternative to the culture of fear in which we live. 

I spend most of my days advocating for people to meet their neighbors; this week, that mission became more difficult to execute, even as the need for it became more apparent than ever.  It is important because it is an essential tool in shifting the culture of fear to an alternative, which we define as a culture of neighboring. In a neighboring culture we live out of authentic joy, interdependent relationships, and abundant belief in the giftedness of each person. Changing the culture is not easy or fast work, but it is also not optional. 

I’m done with the culture of fear, and I am committing again to doing everything in my power to dismantle the systems that prop it up. It is time for something new. I hope you will join me. 

For more information on how you can help the Yarl family, you can visit this article written by The Kansas City Star.