Sanford is a small town with people whose roots go way deep. Its image was tarnished last year because of the killing of Trayvon Martin. I have heard a few say Sanford's image was unfairly stained by the whole situation. In fact, the City of Sanford and local groups are working to "restore" Sanford’s old fashioned charm. But before we take out the cans of fresh paint, I think we are going to have to do some further examination.
Since Trayvon Martin’s death, there have been more shootings of young black men. Just as senseless. Just as tragic. The difference is most of these shootings have been by other young black men. Reports say many of the shootings are the result of a killing that took place 10 years ago, causing a war between two groups from two different neighborhoods.
As far as I know, there have been no marches. There have been no rallies. No prayer vigils. No tributes. No memorials. Just sad funeral after sad funeral. Weeping mother after weeping mother.
Sanford is a small town. (I used to think it was the smallest.) But it has the same big problems among black males as big cities like Chicago and Detroit. I’ve been asking myself what can we do. I know many others are asking the same question. I’ve heard it said that all this is a result of God’s judgment. Well if God is punishing, whose actions are under indictment? Is it the young men or is it us who have failed to help nurture, teach and raise them? What about when some “innocent” person gets caught in the crossfire? We’ve all heard the saying... bullets don’t have names on them. What about the next Trayvon Martin or Jordan Davis who gets taken to be “one of the thugs?” How many more jail cells need to be filled? How many more funerals do we need to have before we stop pointing the finger and do something about this?
It’s going to take more than a march. More than gun control. More than a speech. More than a t-shirt. And more than a superficial image makeover. We have a much bigger restoration project. The churches, organizations and individuals need to ask themselves are they doing enough? I know I am asking myself what more can I do.
