Dear Black Youth

I thought we were past this but it seems like during my residence in Philadelphia, I've grown desensitized to violence. Black youth, is this really what we want our lives to be? A never-ending cycle of violence, mourning, short waves of activism and MORE violence? For the longest, it seemed like we were getting the picture. It seemed like the election of Barack Obama and the bringing of personal responsibility for students to the forefront were starting to take hold in our minds. It seemed like we were turning the corner that our forefathers had been working for decades to push us around. But alas, there's not much light that can be salvaged from this blight of darkness. Murder rates among black teens (aged 14-17) have risen almost 40% this decade alone, and with the grizzly murder of Derrion Albert, it doesn't look like this trend will tail off soon. To my peers, I have only one question: When will we stop? When will territorial vendettas and color wars become less important than our livelihood? How many more people have to die before we realize we are killing OURSELVES?!?! Okay, that was three questions, but all ones that needed to be asked. I'm sick of hearing about death. I know (or at least I hope) you are too. Be the change you want to see in yourself, people. It's an easy task for something with such difficult consequences...