Remember: We are all in this together

I would like to ask everyone to work for healing for all our differences about the Clements shooting last year. As a retired homeware RN, I can only think of a few times when I had "close calls" in people's homes and you have to act fast, call 911, start CPR. And this was only a glance at what must happen in emergency situations across the country every day, whether in medical, police, fire or other situations.

No one knows until you are in those situations what you will do, and no one can tell exactly what can happen in those split seconds where the safety of all mandates immediate decisions. And we are all human. To expect some of us to be perfect is grossly unfair.

I hope we can move on, be fairer to those of all races, ethnicities and to all those who are in the police, fire and medical professions.

There are a few principles in our democracy we must remember: separation of church and state, which says we do not ask our leaders to enforce our morals, they enforce the laws. And there is the principle that everyone is entitled to due process, "innocent until proven guilty." Last but not least and a rule that can be very hard to do: "Judge not lest you be judged."

In one of my first jobs as a phlebotomist, I drew blood on the wrong patient for type and cross match. They caught it in time, but I fully expected to be fired. The pathologist/director kindly said to me, "When you have made as many mistakes as I have made, you may have to be fired."

We are all in this together.

Sandra Kaptain

Elgin