President Barack Obama recently said “whites and people of color experience the criminal justice system differently,” challenging Americans to fight the injustice–at the memorial service for the five officers killed in the Dallas Police Department protest. Many people are posting on social media outlets arguing for or against Obama’s speech, but few people are talking about the central subject of the debate: the people involved.

Americans can always exercise their right to free speech, but that does not mean they always should. Five people were killed serving the United States, and no one, including the President, should use their deaths as a political platform or Facebook rant topic. Their sacrifice demands our respect.

As President, Obama reserves the right to speak out on controversial political topics and is frequently asked to do so. His job includes keeping Americans informed about foreign affairs and domestic policy. However, in the instance of the memorial service in Dallas, his job was not to banter about politics, but to eulogize the officers who died serving others. The problem with his speech was not the side he took, but the fact that he took a side at all.

Some people possess the sickening mentality that it does not matter how they talk about people who have died. The media still criticizes Nancy Reagan and Joe Paterno. This is wrong, not only because of the humanity of the subjects of disrespect, but also because of the friends and families who lost loved ones. Yet people have the audacity to write blogs and Facebook posts in the faces of those who have lost loved ones and essentially say they deserved to die because they did not do their jobs well enough. The people who killed those officers are not the only ones inflicting permanent damage on law enforcement officials and their families.

Americans celebrate the right to express their opinions and feelings openly, but one who expresses the “wrong” opinion or feeling is immediately shut down by the opposition. People cannot seem to decide if Black lives or Blue lives matter more. Does it matter? The lives no one can seem to prioritize in an order everyone agrees with are being taken, and people hardly even take a breath to mourn them before they resort to shouting at each other. People take up their keyboards to defend and offend people without ever acknowledging those they speak out for and against are in fact people who can and do make an impact on the world no matter what Facebook says about them.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and there are times and places to share them. There are also times and places to keep them quiet, let go of the senseless need to be right and sound smart all the time, and take a moment to thank the families impacted by tragedy by saying the words, “thank you,” or by not saying any words at all. On that note, to those who lost loved ones in Dallas, for loving those who serve us: Thank you.