Filed under: News, Politics, Race and Civil Rights
Tanaja's cousin was also injured in the shooting.
A second suspect is being sought by police. The person in question is allegedly a juvenile who is well-known throughout the community. "I am begging you, turn yourself in. End the circle of violence that hurts this great community," said Police Commander Keith Calloway.
The death of Tanaja Stokes is part of the continuous nightmare that refuses to wake us up as a community. The cycle of violence in Chicago is out of control, and other cities across America are faced with similar tragedies on a regular basis. The cold reaction of the alleged perpetrator in this crime adds a more disturbing element to this already alarming situation.
The reality is that children like Tanaja Stokes and Steshawn Brisco need our help. On one hand, we are confronted with the obvious mandate of protecting our young children from those who've become determined to destroy the stability of our neighborhoods. On the other hand, we must realize that homicidal monsters are not created overnight. There was likely a time when Steshawn was every bit as innocent as Tanaja, yet our neglect of this young man allowed the world to corrupt and desensitize him. The only way a man can typically distribute such pain without remorse is if the man is already familiar with unimaginable pain himself. This doesn't let him off the hook, but it says that we've all got to chip in and mentor our kids or else.
I wrote recently about National Cares, a program created by Susan Taylor and other black celebrities who seem to genuinely care about mentoring our youth. The program pushes forth a national challenge to all of black America to find a way to protect our kids and teach them right from wrong. You don't have to give birth to a child in order to be a parent, and you don't have to be a full-time parent in order to have an impact. In many cases, one phone call per week, a few kind words every now and then or a trip to the movies is all that our kids need in order to be impacted by our actions. I am begging and pleading with everyone reading this article to commit themselves to spending 2 - 4 hours per week deliberately giving a positive message to some child in your community. It might save the life of the next Tanaja Stokes.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.