another young, black professional…dead

inescapable is the emptiness in my stomach of having read the story of redskins’ pro-bowl safety sean taylor, a 24-year old professional athlete who was murdered in his home. the number one cause of death of my young, black brethren is homicide. between the ages of 15 and 24, that statistic is higher and more real than any conflict ever waged by man, in history.

jemele hill at espn had some poignant words:

Violence in America has laid a special claim on young, black men. When it made its way to Taylor’s exclusive suburban Miami neighborhood, it didn’t care that Taylor was engaged, the father of an 18-month-old daughter, the son of a police chief, a trusted teammate, the fifth overall pick in the 2004 draft, a hard-hitting safety who teammates nicknamed “Meast” (half-man, half-beast), a Pro Bowler, the Redskins’ leading tackler last season. Or that a plaque honoring him for a generous, monetary donation rests in the cafeteria at his former high school, Gulliver Preparatory.

…

This isn’t to say Taylor was killed because he was black. This is to say that, because he was black, Taylor was more likely to be killed. The weight of that should be just as jarring as waking up and discovering an NFL player died from a gunshot wound. Please don’t roll your eyes, release a frustrated breath, and trivialize this as “playing the race card.”

This is an American problem, not just a racial one. The fact that it has spilled into the sports world should indicate just how serious it is.

the rest of Jemele Hill’s article can be found here.

i guess the real question i’m asking myself is what can i do? i ‘managed’ to make it to my 25th birthday, but i have no joy in being an exception to the rule. i donate to worthy causes, i try to foster a sense of community and uplifting through my actions, and i pray everyday for the safe passage of my friends, family, and those that may be less fortunate than myself. defeatism is not an answer, but it is a nagging reality that lives in the back of mind like a troll under a bridge that grabs my sense of compassion as i scroll through the stories upon stories of murdered young black professionals.

in chicago alone, nailah franklin and amadou cisse, the latter being a post-doctoral student from senegal who was murdered while walking on the university of chicago campus. this man had just finished his phd in chemistry, was sending his family money, and planning to go back to senegal to make a huge difference. yet, in the blink of an eye, he was gunned down…for nothing! his wallet wasn’t taken, nor were any of his possessions.

i think back to the political debates tavis smiley hosted and envision the image of absent GOP candidates. i remember all of the comments i saw on blogs about how having a ‘black debate’ was reverse-racism and how black people need to stop believing that their plight is special. tavis always affirmed that the problems of black america ARE the problems of america, and today sean taylor’s death reminded us of the statistics that line the underbelly of america’s false foundation.

i start to think about the disappointment blacks feel about obama and his lack of emotion in his watered-down speeches. i remember my post about asking why black blogs tend to be so angry. i think of my family, my cousins, my future son and grandsons.

some days, i just don’t get it. today’s sad day is a reminder that talking heads, ignorant reality tv, oil-laced wars, celebrity gossip, and ranting political blogs are all a privilege that ignore the plague of murder and disinterest our society shows towards me…the young, black male.

(image from espn.com)