As I deliberated on the conclusion, I was reminded of five young girls who were in a very competitive event. The opposing team competed on the floor with 30 members and their routine was good. After seeing the jaw-dropping performance of their opponents, they gathered together in a huddle, and began to pray. The five youth came out of their huddle and proceeded to give a flawless performance and went on to win the event.
I believe that people of goodwill should all come together, collect their thoughts, huddle in unity and pray. After the conclusion of the prayer, go into our communities for action to teach and demonstrate the message of non-violence. My father was murdered. A senseless act of violence took his life. It did not matter to me then, nor does it matter to me now, the race of the individuals involved. The bigger issue is that we must try to instill hope to the hopeless and encourage others, as much as we can.
On Sunday, April 15, 2012, I was approached by an elderly lady who suffered a dislocated shoulder, going through immense pain and suffering daily, due to the negligence of a restaurant leaving unattended equipment on the floor. The elderly lady knew that I was involved in the community, and requested my assistance to help her with her plight. I referred her to a local attorney who specialized in her type of case. She offered her gratitude to me for my assistance.
In this case, I was not approached because of the color of my skin. I am an African American, black Negro. The individual was an elderly white woman. I was approached because the woman thought that I could assist her, which I did. In some areas that I travel, I can go countless days without seeing another individual of my similar race. I believe that the issues that we have to deal with in society today are larger than race; it is coming to terms with the problems that we face, addressing the symptoms and providing unconditional love towards the healing of others.
Over the past few weeks there have been a great deal of conversations locally and nationally about violence in the community. I believe that those discussions should continue, and then collaborate together for a solution.
Andrew Shannon is the Founder and Organizer of the Southeast Community Day Parade and Festival. Email him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .