In the immortal words of Marvin Gaye, What’s Going On? The second line says, Brother, Brother, there are far too many of you dying…This song, I know has to be 30 years old, if not older. Does that song not ring true with what happened on September 24, 09 on a Chicago street? A 16 year old high school student was literally beaten to death by at least three young black men of the ages, 19, 18, and 16.
What in the world is going on?
To really make matters worst, this whole thing was video taped and people are shown just standing around watching. Derrion was trying to help out someone else that was being attacked according to his mother. I know her heart is just broken right now. I watched the video of her being interviewed and my heart aches for the family. I have two sons that are 13 and 11 and as a parent, you can imagine her anguish.
How have we gotten here? Do we not respect life anymore? If these assailants step back and rehearse this in their minds, was it worth it? I will probably come across as rambling right now because my heart is beating 100 mph!!! Are we the same race of people that flooded the stairs of the Washington Monument 40 years ago to hear the heart wrenching message of a fellow preacher, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, I have a Dream. I do not believe Dr. King dreamt of this day; a black on black crime that finds Derrion Albert dead. As a pastor, moments like this make me ask myself, am I preaching hard enough? Am I emphasizing enough that God loves each of us and that WE ARE OUR BROTHER’S KEEPER.
How in the world can we straight-faced accuse White America of being racist and irresponsible for their ill treatment of us when we stand idly by and watch a 16 year old boy get brutally murdered. WHAT’S GOING ON? Every one of us ought to go to trial with those 3 possibly 4 young men that will be tried for the death of Derrion Albert.
Since I am a proponent of looking for and finding the silver lining; the proverbial bright side, where is it in this tragedy? Well, the Lord is speaking to me now and telling me that there is still hope. As long as He lives; His death, burial, and resurrection, has taken the sting from death. If Derrion knew Jesus (Who else prompts someone to lay their life on the line for someone else), there is a home awaiting for Bro. Derrion. His tour of duty lasted 16 years and it was time for him to be honorably discharged from this life.
May we all do our level best to love one another just a little bit more and strive a little bit less!
You have been MOTIVATED!!!
Your blog is aptly titled. It’s a question I find myself asking a lot, young men in DC seem to hunt one another for sport – just last year 14 people were killed in 14 days. Kanye West spoke about violence in Chicago but sense I don’t live there I only get to hear the major stories like this one. I’m truly pained by the senselessness of the young men who fought one another. At the end of the day, no one wins – qe all lose all the way around. We lose ourselves, and we desperately need one another. At what point will my brothers give this up? We have had “Boyz N Da Hood,” “Juice,” “New Jack City,” “Baby Boy,” and “American Gangsta” all show the damage caused through violence. I’m tired of blaming whites, rap music, video games, and movies – it’s time we all band together and take back our communities. Let’s turn to the Word of God, let’s turn to the church because prayer changes things. Let’s pray to change this situation. Let pray that there be no more Derrion Albert’s in anyone’s family! Let’s not let Derrion Albert have died in vain…make him the end to all this madness! RIP Derrion.
By: ImABlackPoem on September 29, 2009
at 2:59 pm
Very compelling, sad, an opportunity to be seized…If we can all just be a little bit better than we were yesterday…we need to come together and realize that WE are our only hope ~ How many Derrions will it take?
By: Nannette Kennedy on September 29, 2009
at 6:47 pm