Although problems between races have always existed in the United States, the recent protesting in Charlotte, NC, indictment of a police officer in Tulsa and the murder of five Dallas police officers have kept racial conflict in our attention since summer. Many people believe that these recent conflicts are simply black people versus police officers. This assumption, however, could not be farther from the truth. This is a problem with no easy solution, and our society wants easy answers. But we prefer to look at a video and make judgements, rather than admit this problem goes beyond simple police policy issues. While this may be complicated to fix as nation, as individuals we need to do what is necessary to solve this issue.

In dealing with this matter we can’t ignore the fact that sometimes cops are racist. But the same pattern applies to firefighters, teachers, doctors, business owners or any other profession.

There are racist people in every group. It is a problem, whether intended or accidental, that has been instilled into the hearts and minds of people based on the environment they grew up in.

This is an issue that begins in the way our society raises children. No part of this problem will be solved by pointing fingers at only police just because they are the most obvious example.

We need to take into account that racism is also present in many other areas of our institutions, but because of the recent spotlight placed on cops, these other relevant conflicts are moved to the background of the media–and therefore, our minds.

An example is the bias present in our court system. The stereotype of a black man being more dangerous than a white man is one of the reasons that people of color account for 60 percent of those imprisoned, even though African Americans only make up 30 percent of the U.S. population, according to The Center for American Progress. In addition, according to the NAACP, one in three black men will most likely be imprisoned at least once in their lifetime. As Americans we believe in the right to a fair trial, but it doesn’t seem to apply to our black community.

This doesn’t even begin to talk about the drastic difference between treatment of students who are different races within school districts. Black children are three times more likely to be suspended and make up 40 percent of all school expulsions, according to NPR. This is only for levels K-12.

At the preschool level, African American children represent only 18 percent of those enrolled, but represent about half of those in out-of-school suspension. These children are not receiving the same opportunities as white children, even though some are younger than 7 years old and have barely been exposed to the world.

Just because racism is not evident in Flower Mound, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We live in a community that judges money before race, but that is not the way of life across the country.

Because of this Flower Mound teens think they are excused from worrying about racism. However, just because we do not see it, doesn’t mean it’s not there.

We must be aware of its presence in our nation, and speak out against it whenever we see it. We need to expose those who believe they are superior to someone based on the amount of pigment in their skin. That movement starts with us. It begins with treating people–all people, any people–with respect, whether they be black or white, teacher or cop. We can only point fingers at cops and demand change if we change ourselves.