SAVE OUR BLACK MEN & COMMUNITY

Why are so many black men dying? Seem like every time I watch the news there is a sad story about another young black man who was murdered. Even worse 85 percent of the time the perpetrator of the crime is also black. We can’t blame the "white man", we are killing each other. What will it take for black people to come together and stop the violence? It saddens me to think that if the violence does not end soon our black men will become extinct. Some people may think that’s a bit far- fetched; but I believe it is truly possible. According to statistics, blacks represent 13 percent of the U.S. population. This percentage is a small number considering that there are approximately 312 million people in the U.S. Not to mention, the availability of positive black men in the community is scarce. There are more black men incarcerated than any other race. There are also more black men who are unemployed and come from single parent households. It’s evident that there are risk factors associated with violence in the black community; however, not much is being done to prevent black on black crimes and reduce the overall prevalence of violence in the community as a whole.

I believe 'we' as black people need to be proactive in our community and speak up about putting an end to violence in our community. Don’t wait until the news broadcasters arrive on the scene of the crime to speak up, SPEAK UP NOW! We need to write letters to the mayor, the governor and even our president demanding that something be done. We are the ones who elect the politicians into office so we need to hold them accountable to helping us make our communities a safe place to live.

Everyone deserves to live in a peaceful and safe environment regardless of race, economic status or geographical location. There is nothing worse than hearing helicopters flying over your house and gun shots outside of your window while you are trying to enjoy dinner with your family. I am tired of seeing the "Rest in Peace T-shirts", tired of watching the sad homicide stories on the news, tired of our black men dying and our black women crying and I am tired of the "no snitching rule." It's time to do something different, let’s come together and make a difference in our community.

~God Bless, Keep the FAITH, luv Ms. Kinsey~