Silence is a recipe for acceptance/ Crimes and Communites

I have no relationship with this child yet I got goose bumps when I read an Associated Press headline “ Boy’s body found on Chicago’s West Side”. Whether it is Jennifer Hudson’s nephew or not, this discovery should touch the heart of every human being. It would be exceptionally difficult for Ms. Hudson whose mother and brother were killed just a few days ago. No one should have to suffer so much in such a small time frame. My heart goes out to her.

Unfortunately, Jennifer Hudson is not the only person who has had to suffer because of rampant crime. In many communities, violent crimes are just a part of life. They are the norm and residents seem to have gotten accustomed to such. Most people say nothing as if to allow room for all of it. It is a quiet acceptance of crimes. Families live and raise their children in such communities. Many are victimized yet the silence continues. Many see no end; they resign to it while some simply flee giving in to further decay. A silent community becomes demoralized, gets swallowed and reinforces the vicious killing circle.

I do hope that Ms. Hudson’s tragic loss helps to bring light to what appears to be a disease in many communities. Obviously, the police force alone cannot and should not do it all. The community has to be a part of the remedy. No one can afford to be tolerant anymore. It will not go away by itself.

What I despise is that these tragedies too often go silent. A community intimidated, a police force unaided and left alone to play God is the perfect recipe for rampant crime. It is obvious that none of them can be successful without the other. I hope they cozy up.

If any community doubts that their hesitation to get involved in their own lives, to redefine the roles, the set the boundaries, their silence will no doubt continue to thicken the circle to their peril. I hope that Ms. Hudson’s celebrity status forces entire communities to re-examine, to feel and to see the reality of how silence is partly responsible for the killing spree disease that many American communities experience. Talk Jennifer, talk loudly Jennifer.