jonetta rose barras: Ending violence by example

“Despite all the good things and people in my life, I have been greatly affected by violence in my young [12] years,” said Talayia Richardson, a student at DC Public Schools’ Wheatley Education Campus. “Growing up in Washington, DC, I have seen more violence than any child should.”

My heart broke when I heard those words. Imperceptibly the innocence of childhood has been stolen from so many young people. As adults they will be unable to retrieve it.

“Kids are becoming more and more violent through joining gangs, use of guns and bullying. Young people are dying left and right and some are even hurting themselves due to being victims,” said Tavon Jones, a student a LaSalle-Backus Education Campus. “I have several friends that have joined gangs. We typically play basketball and football together, but they understand that I do not want to be part of that lifestyle.”

Tavon’s is a powerful struggle. We have all read news reports about what has happened to children who have refused the “invitation” of gangs.

Talayia and Tavon are DC winners of the “Do the Write Thing Challenge,” a nationwide writing contest that provides “middle school students an opportunity to examine the impact of youth violence on their lives.” Participants get to examine what can be done to change the “culture of violence,” and they are encouraged to “break the cycles of violence” in their homes and communities. The National Campaign to Stop Violence, the initiative’s sponsor, has involved more than 1.9 million youths in the program, according to its website.

Several DC students, who accepted the challenge and wrote essays, participated in a July 6 forum on youth violence prevention co-hosted by Attorney General Karl Racine and Ward 6 DC Council member Charles Allen, chair of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety. Ward 3 Council member Mary Cheh, at-large member Elissa Silverman, Ward 7’s Vincent C. Gray and Ward 8’s Trayon White Sr. also attended the event.

As of July 13, the Metropolitan Police Department reported 82 homicides in the District this year. Nearly half of the victims were youth — young people 19 years of age or younger.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that among youth 10 to 24 years old, homicide is the leading cause of death for African-Americans. It’s the second leading cause of death for Hispanics.

Talayia said she lost her Uncle Brock to “senseless violence.” He was at a party and someone stabbed him.

“His murderer was never found,” Talayia said. “There was, sadly, never any closure. No one answered lingering questions. Why did someone want Uncle Brock dead? Why did no one ever come forward who witnessed this horrific act of violence and tell who did it? As a result, my family was scarred permanently.”

When I was about Talayia’s age, I visited a favorite aunt in the hospital. She had gone there to have her sinuses drained. When I saw her, tubes covered most of her face. My mother assured me everything would be fine. Two days later, my aunt was dead. I can recall the scene in that hospital room as if it were yesterday. And I remember the death of my Uncle Tiny with equal accuracy: My sisters and I gave up our room to him during his final days. The sound of his coughing rattled us. Even now it comes to me whenever anyone mentions the word cancer.

My aunt and uncle died somewhat natural deaths. Nevertheless, I was traumatized for years by those experiences. I cannot fully fathom, however, what haunts young people in DC who have seen relatives or friends splayed on a city street, blood staining the asphalt.

District elected officials have grappled with youth violence for decades, particularly each summer when the heat seems to catch tempers, sending them over the top and resulting in someone being injured or murdered.

Since his election in 2014, Racine has been involved in juvenile justice reform, hoping to prevent young people from entering detention centers or jails. Working with executive branch agencies, public school faculty members and students, he has seen some success during his tenure for his efforts. Allen helped usher changes to the Youth Rehabilitation Act. And under Chairman Pro Tempore Kenyan McDuffie’s leadership, the legislature worked its way through passage of the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results (NEAR) Act of 2016, which among other things created an Office of Violence Prevention and Health Equity within the DC Department of Health.

Unfortunately, as the MPD statistics indicate, those efforts have not been enough. Can the government legislate good behavior? Can it prevent violence? Shouldn’t that be the role of parents?

Truthfully, Tavon, Talayia and their peers who attended the recent forum are not the young people about whom elected officials, agency managers and MPD leaders worry. After all, Talayia has a 4.0 grade-point average and is a cheerleader.

“I choose a path of peace, and if that inspires other teens, then I’m making a difference for them and for myself,” she said.

“I am smart enough to know that a world without any form of violence is pretty much impossible, but I know that I can do my small part to make the lives of people around me better,” Tavon said. “Stop the violence by being the example!”

That’s strong advice from a middle school student. Now, who will accept his challenge?

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jonetta rose barras is a DC-based author and freelance writer. She can be reached at thebarrasreport@gmail.com.

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The DC Office of Cable Television, Film, Music and Entertainment video of the July 6 forum appears below. You can also read the winning essays by Talayia Richardson and Tavon Jones.