You keep saying ALL LIVES MATTER.

Every time we talk about the black lives ending every single day at the hands of a racist system by saying “Black Lives Matter”, you stand up and yell back that no, ALL LIVES MATTER.

But here’s the thing. I don’t think you really believe that ALL LIVES MATTER.

Because, if you did believe it, then you would act like ALL lives really do matter. You see, you can’t really pick which lives fall under “all” if you are going to say “all.”

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be against common sense gun control. You wouldn’t just talk about all the gun deaths in Chicago when others bring up police violence.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be trying to split up families and send people back to drug wars and human trafficking in Central America.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be against refugees from war-torn Syria trying to save their lives by coming to the west.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be so eager to go to war in the Middle East and kill the wives and children of suspected terrorists.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t oppose the idea of ensuring affordable, accessible health care to all people, regardless of ability to pay. You would understand that health care shouldn’t be a purchased commodity, but a human right.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be trying to take away food and housing from needy families here in America who are supported by our meager social safety net.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t demonize an entire religion because of the actions of a radical few.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t be wildly cheering a political candidate who shows complete and utter disdain for the human rights of women and Muslims and people of color and poor people and immigrants and refugees and and basically anyone who isn’t him.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t fight tooth and nail against the right of people to love whom they choose, be who they choose, and express themselves how they choose. You wouldn’t label an entire group of people dangerous or pedophiles because they want to use the bathroom in peace.

If you cared about all lives, you wouldn’t disparage a movement to raise awareness of black lives. You wouldn’t feel the need to have a knee-jerk reaction of demonization and marginalization towards black human beings who want to stop being killed for being black. You wouldn’t label them all “thugs” and “deadbeats” and “welfare queens.”

But, because you do all those things, I really just don’t think you believe ALL LIVES MATTER. Why don’t you just be honest and say what you really mean:

WHITE, STRAIGHT, CHRISTIAN LIVES MATTER.

All others negotiable.