Wasted Lives

"If I could get the ear of every young man but for one word, it would be this; make the most and best of yourself. There is no tragedy like a wasted life--a life failing of its true end, and turned to a false end." -T.T. Munger

I do a lot of work in some of the toughest areas of Richmond, San Pablo and Oakland, CA. Many times I have the opportunity to interact with the people who live in those cities. About a month ago I had an encounter with a young man who evidently felt I disrespected him in some way. I am still not sure what I did, but he was filled with so much hate and anger directed at me that if he had had a gun with him I probably would not be writing this blog. There are so many young black men that possess so much rage it doesn’t take much to set them off. My experience that day reminded me of a scene in the movie Tombstone when Wyatt Earp asked Doc Holiday what made Johnny Ringo do the horrible things he did:

Wyatt Earp: What makes a man like Ringo, Doc? What makes him do the things he does?
Doc Holiday: A man like Ringo has got a great big hole, right in the middle of him. He can never kill enough, or steal enough, or inflict enough pain to ever fill it.
Wyatt Earp: What does he need?
Doc Holiday: Revenge.
Wyatt Earp: For what?
Doc Holiday: Bein' born.

I think there are a lot of angry young black men out there that are cut from the same cloth as Johnny Ringo. They are seeking revenge for “bein’ born.” They want revenge for not having an intact home, for not being loved, and for not having the life they only see in the movies. They take out their revenge on other blacks. They get involved in drugs to make quick money, and join gangs to find acceptance and protection. In an episode of the television series “American Gangster,” a gang member says that he expected to be dead by 25 years old and now that he is 35 he does not know what to do with the rest of his life. It is a sad commentary when people live their lives with the expectation that will be dead before their 25th birthday. This is the reality of many young blacks living in the ‘hood.

The Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics Report offers a snapshot of racial disparities among violent crime victims. Black people represented an estimated 13 percent of the U.S. population in 2005, (the latest data available), but were the victims of 49 percent of all murders. Most of the black murder victims — 93 percent — were killed by other black people, the study found. In another study dated Aug. 9, 2007 the Federal Justice Department stated “49% of murder victims are black m and most are 17-29 years old, and their murder rate is going up.”

My question is where is the concern? Where are the protests? Young blacks are dying at such high rates and yet it doesn’t even garner a front page article. It’s like it’s old hat, like it doesn’t matter that one more young black man has died at the hands of another black. There are so many studies, books and articles of the plight of blacks in America, but no resolution. I applaud those who are trying to address the problems, but much more is needed.

What needs to be done? I believe we need to have more positive role models in the black community. We need to impress upon our young people the value of education. We need to value family. An unprecedented 70% of all babies born into black families are born into single parent households—we must reverse this trend if we are going to change the course of our current downward spiral. We need to focus on the lives of children and create an environment of learning and support that will begin to reverse the negative cycle. The problem will not be cured overnight, but we need to start now!

We need black leaders from all walks of life to exercise their influence to make a difference. Sports and movie stars, doctors, lawyers, architects, teachers, business owners and the like have a very important part to play. They must be active in encouraging and inspiring our young people to break the chain of ignorance and the cycle of death and destruction by inspiring a sense of hope that will help change our communities.