This is what I mean

     If you are anything like me, when you hear injustice your mind immediately retreats to the well-known but more than likely distant stories from the news. You know the ones that happen overseas in third world countries. Or the ones that occur in our back yard as we look for someone to point our outstretched finger at, which seemingly has found comfort in that pointed position over the years. The stories we discuss over beer at the local tavern allowing others to hear our outrage while the injustices continue to happen. But I am not here tonight for any of those stories. I mean I could have very easily written a long blog speaking about the recent research revealing high graduation rates in the 50 largest American cities. That should cause outrage and reason for a justice alarm to ring. I mean if Detroit, Michigan is only graduating 1 of 4 kids then something is terribly wrong. But my mind this evening has taken me to a more personal place. Somewhere I hope we can all relate to one another and those around us. 

     In my esteemed position as a Starbucks barista I have seen first hand the serious broken relationships that exists between people who are different from one another. This is most obvious in the way people from my comfortable suburb look at and react to homeless people. There is one particular homeless man who comes to my store very day and pays for everything he asks for. The only reasons for people's discomfort is he looks homeless, is a little messy, and he might talk to you longer than you want. A couple of weeks ago this man was forced to leave or store by a manager because there was higher management coming in and he was an eye-sore to the store. I have become friends with this man and was furious when I heard the story. I tell you this story because I think there are small happenings of injustice happening all around us in our every day life and we just need to learn how to see and respond. 

     I can tell you this, I wanted to quit immediately because it infuriated me that my supervisors treat other people in this way. I have grown very capable of seeing injustice, but I am not creative in how I respond. How would you respond if you were in my situation?