Happy Hump Day, All!
First things, first … I hope that wherever you are, that you are able to weather the winter storms … I checked in with my daughter and grandson up North in Connecticut and she said, “It’s freezing!” I can remember when I “weathered such storms” … in New York and New Hampshire, and I don’t miss it so much. So … stay warm and stay safe. Here in SoFlo, we had a couple of tornado touchdowns that caused some extensive damage in places like Hialeah and even up further North in Juno Beach and West Palm Beach, FL.
There was a shadow cast over the MLK, Jr. Day celebration in Miami last week at the MLK Park … two “kids” started shooting after a brief fist fight and they injured 8 innocent celebrants at the Park on MLK Day. Now, of course, this was “talked” about by one newscaster … not from around here … who said, “Yeah, there was a shooting on MLK, Jr. Day in an MLK Park in Miami … So much for peace!” These are the kinds of reports that annoy me most because, first of all, the newscaster was an “older white haired white guy” who obviously was trying to talk negatively about “My People”. We go through a lot in this country … having been enslaved and then repeatedly treated as second class citizens who had to fight for the right to vote in a country that “they” helped to build, not to mention a fair shot at “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. How freaking ridiculous is this when “we as a people” have proven over and over that we are equal to anyone on this planet!! Shucks, here in this country, people kill presidents on any day they wish … even during a motorcade in Texas where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated! Is that “normal” in America?!?
So … with the help of the community in Miami where the shooting took place … the community decided to help. And it was through their tips, since “they” are NOT condoning this shooting and are no longer accepting these shootings as “normal”, that an 18 year old convicted felon (imagine … that at 18 a child is a convicted felon!) along with a 17 year old who appeared in “juvenile court” there in Miami, are finally behind bars after less than 8 days of investigations! There were 8 people hit, none killed – thank God, and the youngest was 11 years old. The “community” there in Miami where the shooting took place worked closely with the Northside Miami Dade Police to bring these two “kids” to justice! I could give you their names but they have already gotten enough publicity and I don’t want to contribute to their “fifteen seconds of fame” that they were seeking! I hope that they get the help that they need! There is not much “help” or re-socialization that takes place behind bars for these kids. There are programs that seek to help youth who have gotten off on “the wrong foot”, so to speak, like a program here in Broward County called “The Community Justice Program” sponsored by the Broward Sheriff’s Office and another program by the Urban League of Broward County called “Project Embrace” that seek to end the “schoolhouse to jailhouse” pipeline so prevalent in many of our cities. The youth are required to participate in and complete a program with excellent workshops and presentations by qualified professionals that seek to reach them before it is too late …
Keep up the great work folks there in Miami Dade as you seek to rid the communities of this horrific gun violence!
Peace,
Educational Excellence 