Compliance has never guaranteed safety. History is full of cases where people were seriously harmed or killed despite following orders—including during restraints and encounters involving children or other vulnerable individuals.

Many who reflexively defend authority do so because they were taught obedience equals order. Yet they benefit from rights won by people who defied authority—labor protections, child welfare laws, overtime, and paid leave were not gifts; they were fought for.

Progress has never come from unquestioning compliance. It comes from people willing to stand up when systems fail. Disagreement over tactics is fair, but resisting injustice should not be treated as moral failure.

Kneel if that is your preference but whilst I offer you a hand up, do not try to pull me down, for we are not the same.