I have covered a lot of gruesome crimes over the past 25 years. Sadly, you get used to the gore. But I’ve found the bodies of young people bother me the most as I age.
Sara, Daniel and I were headed out for supper Friday night when I got the call about a body on Grant Street.
It turned out to be a 15-year old.
As the father of four boys all mine made it to 16. And that is one of the reasons my heart goes out to the victims of recent shootings in Clarksdale.
A 15-year old is still a boy, but he’s beginning to get his muscles. He’s rapidly growing more mature and striving so hard to be a man.
It takes another four or five years for the boy to fade away and the man to take over. It’s such a critical time.
Yes, there is so much potential and hope - as long as something awful doen’t take them away.
Puddle of Blood
There is blood on the streets of Clarksdale today. You can drive to the corner of South Edwards and Kentucky and view it if you are so inclined.
It came from a 36-year-old man that was somebody’s son, somebody’s brother or father.
Sadly, it’s not the first puddle of blood I’ve seen in Clarksdale this summer. The mass shooting downtown in May that hurt 14 saw one of those victims shot right in front of your Clarksdale Press Register.
That stain was there for several days until a spring rain washed it away.
Crying out to Heaven
I read in my Bible this week how the blood of Abel cried out to God after being spilled on the earth.
If my Sunday School training holds true, I think the Bible repeatedly talks about how spilled blood pollutes the land. It hints that God turns his face away from that place because what he sees is the sin of murder.
We need to Man up
I’m sorry for the sermon, but the violence I have seen this summer in this small town stuns me.
And no one seems to be able to do anything about it.
There are those who say as long as it stays in the black community it’s not my problem.
Well, this White boy thinks it is my problem. I am my brother’s keeper! This waste of human life and curse of violence on our town must be broken.
How many more must die before our leaders and more importantly, lawmen do something?
I urge our police and sheriff to get this under control. The Brickyard needs extra patrols. Cars need to be stopped and people need to know if you are trouble and in the B’Yard you are going to bump up against The Man.
Talk is Cheap
I applaud the meeting at the Civic Auditorium Wednesday evening. It was a good start.
There was prayer, there was a sharing of concerns and there were lawmen in attendance who I admire and respect.
Then the politicians got up and had their say. I saw the air go out of the room as those in attendance wilted in front of excuses and fancy words.
Folks, the leadership of this town is good at talking but they never seem to get around to doing the hard thing.
I think they are lazy and won’t do anything that costs them a vote. Maybe they just don’t have the mentaly capacity to figure out what needs to be done.
Crimes like we have seen this summer hurt this town’s good name. And at some point it will affect tourism, industrial development, recruiting doctors and property values.
Safety is Job One!
Safety is always job one and our city leaders need to focus on giving us back a Clarksdale that is safe and secure.
Are you fed up with crime in Clarksdale? Has your family suffered from the violence? Are you scared?
Let’s pick up the phone and call in tips and request extra patrols. Let’s watch our children carefully and seek the help of church and school when we see them headed down the wrong path.
Let’s get tough on law breakers and demand our courts and judges put those who break the law away so the rest of us are safe and secure. We’ve got a brand new multi-million dollar jail, let’s fill it up.
Last but not least let’s wrap our arms around those who have suffered at the hands of criminals. Let’s be tough on the bad boys, but love on those who have been victimized by crime.
Clarksdale is a special place and we need to stop this problem before it gets one bit worse.
Floyd Ingram is the Editor of your Clarksdale Press Register. He lives here and calls police when he sees a problem. If you have a solution to Clarksdale’s crime problem call him at 662-627-2201.
