Violence Doesn’t Hesitate — And Neither Should You

When I was growing up, there were
always stories of random acts of
violence here and there, or a tragic
shooting that would periodically
capture the headlines. But what
was once a rarity has sadly
transformed into some sort of
normalized disturbing behavior.
Just within the last week, a Florida
teen was accused of bludgeoning his
parents to death and partying
afterwards; while in Brooklyn, NY,
an eight-year-old boy was
kidnapped, killed and cut into pieces
after he asked a stranger for
directions. And in between all of
this madness, there were countless
shootings, stabbings and other
incidents across the country. The
culture of violence is out of control
and it is colorless, ageless and
doesn’t discriminate in choosing its
victims.
Last week, staffers at the National
Action Network (NAN) and I sat
down with New York Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand as we held an
urgent meeting on the staggering
rise in violence. Discussing
everything from removing guns off
of our streets to educating young
people — to providing increased
recreational activities and
employment — we not only touched
on the root causes of this dilemma,
but also what decisive action we can
all take. And earlier in the month,
Rev. Sharpton and I held a similar
meeting during the Essence Music
Festival with New Orleans Mayor
Mitch Landrieu who has young
folks dying daily in his city.
When we speak of violence, often
times, people resort to stereotypes
or dismiss the idea all together
believing that it doesn’t impact
them. The truth is, innocent victims
sadly come in all shapes, colors,
sizes, ages, income brackets and
religions. The horrific incidents of
the past week are validation in that
alone.
In Florida, you had a seemingly
normal, suburban white teenage
boy who is now accused of killing
his own parents; and then hosting a
party while their bodies lay in an
upstairs bedroom. And in the
Brooklyn Hasidic Jewish
community, a young boy’s
dismembered body was discovered
and the culprit was allegedly a
member of the same faith. This is a
national epidemic and it’s time we
stop pretending it only takes place
“over there.”
As NAN continues its push to bring
this issue to the forefront, we urge
everyone to do the same. Call your
local elected officials, organize a
rally and ask why more isn’t being
done to resolve this ever-growing
catastrophe. Just as labor unions
organize and convene around ideas
of collective bargaining, so too must
we organize around the issue of our
lives. We at NAN are consistently
seeking new methods of combating
violence, and though we may not
always have the answer, we never
falter in our resolve.
On August 27th, NAN will hold our
annual march on Washington, D.C.
honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. (whose statue will
also be unveiled that weekend). We
call on everyone to join us as we
seek new solutions to combating our
most pressing challenges. If you
cannot join us in Washington,
commit to doing something
somewhere in your community. The
time for turning a blind eye is over;
we must take decisive action now.
How can we sleep at night knowing
our 16-year-old babies have guns in
the next apartment, in the adjacent
building, or hell even upstairs?!
How can you call yourself a man or
woman of the cloth, an educator, a
Christian, a counselor, a parent or
even a good person and not do
anything?
What has happened to us?