KILLING THE FUTURE, ONE CHILD AT A TIME
A few weeks ago, news spread the country about 16-year-old honor student Derrion Albert, who was brutally beaten to death on his way home from school. It took me a while to react to it, but I’m being the mother of a young son, this is something that worries me.
What Happened
A group of kids were fighting as Albert was past. He was swept into the fight, hit with wooden planks and kicked. He tried to get up but was knocked back down. The four teens (now charged with murder) kept hitting Albert until he didn’t move. It wasn’t until minutes later that someone grabbed him and dragged him into a building. It was too late.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Albert became the third Chicago teenager killed in September. At least seven more were shot.
The teens who were charged with Albert’s death were his classmates. As a watched the gruesome video (captured by a student on his cell phone), I couldn’t help but cry. Albert had a promising future ahead of him. Not any more.
The Chicago community lost five lives that day. Albert was killed and the culprits, if convicted, will spend years in jail. The odds of them living a promising life (after being released) are slim.
Something needs to change. Quick.
Statistics
- In the inner cities, more than half of all black men do not finish high school.
- In 2004, 21 percent of black men in their 20′s who did not attend college were in jail or prison.
- By their mid-30′s, 6 in 10 black men who had dropped out of school had spent time in prison. (source)
Make a Change
After hearing the Albert’s story, celebrities have been speaking out about the condition of the Black community, youth in particular.
Rapper Bow Wow proposed a call to action to young men and women who think that it’s cool to act out what they see on television or hear in songs. Although they need to be accountable for their actions (instead of placing the blame on someone else), media and entertainers must also understand the effect they have on the world.
Actor and rapper Nas, who has always been outspoken about the potential of Black youth, wrote an open letter to the “Young Warriors who are fighting the wrong wars.”
Nas writes:
Your fight should to be about becoming bigger and better. To have your own businesses. Real businesses Not Hustles. To have careers not jobs. Not selling mixtapes. You have the resources to do anything you want. There’s no excuses. We have no one to blame but ourselves. We have so much great work to do!!!
(Read the entire letter here.)
Bottom Line
Who said it was cool to murder and rob? When did it become OK to take someone’s life? Why has this become the norm?
Please, enlighten me.
Filed under: celebrity status, children's safety, death | Leave a Comment
Tags: Black youth, Bow Wow, Chicago, Derrion Albert, murder, Nas, RIP, teen violence, Young Warriors
Connect With Me
keep in contact
share | read | suggest
No Responses Yet to “KILLING THE FUTURE, ONE CHILD AT A TIME”