City Hall killings in my hometown.

Last night a man walked into the city hall of my hometown Kirkwood, Missouri, a suburban area of St. Louis, and shot up the building killing 5 people and leaving 2 people wounded. One of the wounded is the mayor of Kirkwood who is in critical condition. Inevitably the media began quoting Kirkwood citizens saying "this just doesn't happen here" expressing the freak nature of the tragedy in such a safe town. Although the killings were horrible and the loses of the families were devistating, I am more scared of the affect this might have on the issue of race in a very racially segregated city of St. Louis. I am scared that people will look at this incident as one in which a black man committed an act of hatred against a white government and that white citizens of St. Louis will in return instill racism into their children. This incident was a horrible act of violence by a disturbed man and I hope that St. Louisans and Americans alike can look at this travesty with colorblind eyes rather than allow this to perpetuate racism in our country. Through unifing communities and discussing racial issues we can allow racism to die rather than passing on this ignorance to future generations. We need to focus on our similarities and embrace our differences. The only way we can bring about change is to work together as one beautifully diverse community with a common goal of justice for all.