Amidst all of the commotions that are going on in the world, for a few days now it seems like the sudden spark of violence in my beat (neighborhood) has calmed down a bit. Some of the things headlining the news are mostly new stories about a new fatality in Oakland, the spread of the oil spill in Mississippi and some other 'fun factors' illustrating what news editors and reporters can come up with when it is considered a slow news week.
So as the day moves on, so does the coverage of the news. Like with the saying, "Life goes on," it seems like that is exactly what is going on in my district. Life goes on, so authorities move on to the next case. It's not an actual headline news unless there are new developments or someone new has been victimized. But, what about those late innocent victims? What about their family? How are they coping? How does the suspects family feel about the whole situation? The community? Are they embarrassed? Clearly this would make a better news story than spending 2 minutes of air/news time explaining to me, what my sleeping positions really mean and what it says about my personality.
Considering all this, the notion that remain in peoples brain that Bayview/ Hunterpoint is such a bad neighborhood does not make any sense. A murder or two, or three happened a few weeks ago- so, so what? If the news and the media can forget about it and move on to the next topic, why cant the public do the same? Move on to the next topic of discussion, and make a new assumption. Instead, this misconception remains buried deep into the people's head. "BV/HP is bad.. there's murder and violence there all the time!" If life goes on, then why cant the people's misconception, stereotype and other negative thoughts go on as well?
As I continue my journey, of finding a solution as to how the City can alleviate the negative reputation BV/HP currently holds. My search for answers continues. Why? Why are these youth so violent, why is the neighborhood plagued by crimes and other illegal activities? Why isn't the community standing up to the problem and own up to it? (or are they, and have they?) I want to figure out what is going on in the minds of these corrupted youth, how they feel about the victims and how the victims feel about them, and the whole neighborhood it self feels. Everyday is a new day so there are promising hope that with each new day, a crime will be forgotten, and bad pasts can be left behind.
Let's just hope that some of these youth, realize and appreciate the new day that God has allowed them to have, before it is to late.
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