Violence in the City...

So--there's an 8 part feature story in the Times Picayune this week. Yesterday (Sunday) was the first part, today was the second part and it will continue throughout the week. It's a heart breaking tale about a young man (17) that lived in the 7th ward of New Orleans that was gunned down by not one but two different guns. He was walking down the street with a buddy going to get a late night snack. The 7th ward is a part of the city that brings fear with just the mention of its name. Gangsters run the inner-city and control every action of its residents. It's a terrible story--but more often than not one becomes numb to such reports of violence and begins to ignore them. This story is different than most and caught my attention. The victim was a 17 year old altar boy, working on his confirmation. A high school student with a high school sweetheart. A young man that sounds a lot like the young men I have known in my lifetime. What is more devastating, this victim had NO record, as most of the murder victims from this part of the city do. Was he in the wrong place at the wrong time? Or, was he simply great at not getting caught? I suppose none of us will know--or maybe this 8 part series will reveal to us what happened at the end? Like I said, who knows. The thing that inspired me to blog about this particular story is the responses posted on the TP page. It's heartbreaking in itself, the ignorance that still lingers in this world. Some people are screaming "it's because he's black, all black people are horrible!" while others are screaming, "it's because he's black, no black people have a chance at life." Excuses are flying, but there have been no logical explanations offered up. Why? I must agree that a lot of this tragedy could be avoided if the children in the inner-cities were raised with any kind of hope and any kind of sense of accomplishment. When one KNOWS he has a chance to make it in society, he is a lot more apt to TRY to make it in said society. When one is told from birth and each and every day of his life that he is worthless and will never amount to anything, one is a lot more apt to give up before he even begins trying. So--yes, it takes a village (education system, etc.) to raise a child...but the village needs to stand firm and MAKE mama and daddy do the majority of the work and go on from there. If mama and daddy have a sense of accomplishment somewhere in their lives, they're a lot more likely to impress on their children that THEY also have a chance to make it. Here's an idea--if mama and daddy are CAPABLE of working (and no, being lazy and uneducated is not an excuse of being incapable to work), pull their government checks and MAKE them go out there to work. I've seen PLENTY of advertisements for work at the local convenient stores and fast food joints. You don't even need a high school diploma to work there--so NO excuses. Finally, the city will never get better with the attitudes expressed quite often in these viewer posts. Running away won't fix the problem. Blaming races won't fix the problem. Becoming proactive in your city and ignoring the color of one's skin will be a beginning. Don't ignore the violence, step up and try to put an end to it. It's not race that is the issue, either--it's a socioeconomic deal. And those of you that cry and scream "it's race, it's race" are doing nothing to help--except teaching children that it is ok to write off life's hardships because they have a certain color skin. I mourn for New Orleans and have for quite sometime. The city holds a very near and dear place in my heart and has for 10 years now (ahhh...a hint to you about me). I hate that people keep running from the city, rather than trying to help it. I unfortunately am not there--but still have people that are my life still residing there and fighting as hard as they can. It's a city that once enters your soul, will never leave. Well, I've said my piece for now--will return later. Til then--xoxo.