I have been stuck in my A/C bedroom a lot this week watching TV and reading some. I was following the murders of three college students, who were killed execution-style in a Newark, N.J., schoolyard. Mayor Cory Booker, who took office a year ago, says police are making progress against the city's high murder rate. Billboards in Newark, N.J., read, "HELP WANTED: Stop the Killings in Newark Now!"
The new mayor, elected last year, ran on a campaign promise of reducing crime. Still, gun violence has become an all too common part of daily life.
Last weekend, four young adults, friends who were headed to college together in a few days, were shot at close range, killing three and critically wounding the fourth. Two men have been arrested in the Newark killings, 28 yr. old man, Jose Carranza and a teenage boy.
The new mayor, elected last year, ran on a campaign promise of reducing crime. Still, gun violence has become an all too common part of daily life.
Last weekend, four young adults, friends who were headed to college together in a few days, were shot at close range, killing three and critically wounding the fourth. Two men have been arrested in the Newark killings, 28 yr. old man, Jose Carranza and a teenage boy.
"The kind of violence that happens in Newark is random. There has never been any animosity between blacks and Latinos," said Ras Baraka, principle of Central High School in Newark and the son of NJ's former poet laureate's Amiri Baraka. The reason he is the "former" Poet Laurete of NJ is interesting. Amiri Baraka was New Jersey’s Poet Laureate at the time of the September 11, 2001 attacks. He wrote a poem titled "Somebody Blew Up America" about the event. The poem was controversial and highly critical of the American government. The poem also contains lines claiming Israel's involvement in an alleged 9/11 conspiracy. After publishing this poem Governor Jim McGreevey tried to remove Baraka from the post, only to discover that there was no legal way to do so. So he then abolished the NJ Poet Laureate title, Baraka no longer holds the position as Poet Laureate in New Jersey. Read more about this interesting man:
In 2003, Amiri's daughter and Principle Ras's sister, and her friend were found shot to death in a home. Ras himself is very interesting: Ras Baraka has been called "one of the most consistent, courageous, and insightful activists of his generation." The son of revered poet-activists Amina and Imamu Amiri Baraka, Ras inherited their proud tradition of artistic excellence and community activism. A native of Newark, New Jersey and from a family who has lived in that city for over 70 years, His entire life's work is a commitment to the empowerment of people. I know I got off on a tangent here but what if there were more Poets in the World and therefore more children of Poets? I think there would be less killings!
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