Our Political Leaders Have Failed the Black Community

I am saddened by the state of affairs in our inner cities. Recently, in Washington, D.C., the nation’s capital and the place I call home, several young people, including a 15-year-old and an 18-year-old, were murdered. Their lives cut short, never providing them with the opportunity to realize their God-given potential.

The perpetuation of a black society that glorifies violence and drug use, which is often heard in rap music, has been a poison for the black community, particularly young black males. This subculture has attracted boys from a young age, and like an addictive drug, it is so attractive that far too many of them depend on a way of life that will either land them in jail or, in the worst circumstances, result in their death.

I am saddened by the fact that God created all of those young men with the aptitude and intelligence to accomplish extraordinary feats, but that so many will fail to see it because their circumstances prevent it.