I found myself caught in the rain tonight, unexpectedly. I didn’t have my umbrella. I pulled my hoodie up to protect myself and in that moment, even here thousands and thousands of miles away from the sadness and shame of today’s verdict, the world felt a little less safe.

Earlier, I was talking to someone about my desire to not have kids and all the things that would need to be in place for me to begin to consider to change my mind (i.e. being irretrievably in love with someone who was irretrievably in love with me; geographical stability; financial stability…) and then I heard the news and was reminded. How could I possibly give this world another Black baby when it treats the ones it has so poorly?