Friday, March 29, 2024

Hadiya Pendleton Death, President Obama Neglects Own Backyard.

February 6, 2013 by  
Filed under News, Opinion, Politics, Weekly Columns

Like
Like Love Haha Wow Sad Angry

(ThyBlackMan.com) Just imagine someone in your family travelling half way across the country to help a family they don’t know nor have any connection to; while at the same time his own family is in crisis.  Just imagine how you would feel if your family barely had food to eat, but yet your father goes across town and gives some of your food to a family that he doesn’t even know.

I am sure in both cases the family would feel betrayed and a bit confused; and outsiders would surely think the father has lost his mind.  Is it a noble gesture to try to help your fellow man?  Of course it is.  But, while it might be tragic for another family to be suffering, a father’s first obligation is to his own family, then his own community, and then the world.

President Obama, in many ways, serves as our nation’s symbolic “father.”  In times of crisis, we look to him for comfort, support, and direction.  Remember Reagan after the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded, Bush 41 after the Rodneyhadiya-pendleton King riots or Bush 43 after 911?

Having worked around three presidents, I am fully aware that a president can’t be everywhere, all the time and he has to pick and choose how he leads a country in a time of crisis.  What a tragedy if that moment finds him unprepared or unqualified for the moment that could be his finest hour.

I found the anemic response by this White House and this president to the senseless death of Hadiya Pendleton very tragic.

Pendleton was a 15 year-old honors student who was shot and killed last Tuesday in Chicago.    She had recently performed at President Obama’s January 21st inauguration with her high school’s band and drill team. She was shot in the back at a neighborhood park.   She had just finished taking her exams at King College Prep.  According to police, a gunman jumped a fence, ran toward the group of girls and opened fire, then jumped in a car and left the scene. The girls were standing under a canopy to hide themselves from the rain.  Hadiya Pendleton was hit in the back; a male victim, 16, is in serious condition. The park is about a mile from Obama’s Chicago home.

The White House’s response was weak at best and callous at worst.  When asked about Hadiya Pendleton’s death, presidential spokesman Jay Carney called it a ‘terrible tragedy for someone to be killed when they had so much of their life ahead of them.  The president and first lady’s thoughts and prayers are with the family of Hadiya Pendleton.  All of our thoughts and prayers are with her family.’  When Obama was asked about Pendleton’s murder, he went into this bizarre rant about, “well, the problem is that a huge proportion of those guns come in from outside Chicago… creating a bunch of pockets of gun laws without a unified, integrated system of background checks makes it harder for a single community to protect itself from gun violence.”  His response was very creepy, as though he was just a robot, with no connection with his own humanity.

Now juxtapose that with his response to the shootings in Newtown, Conn. He shed tears for those kids and takes a trip there, but for Hadiya Pendleton and others who have been killed this year—just a few terse words.

This year alone, Chicago has had more than 42 murders and 506 last year.  Remember, many of these murders occurred within blocks of President Obama’s Chicago home, surrounded by a full complement of Secret Service agents.

He is driven through these neighborhoods with his military-style entourage, but somehow never finds the time to stop by and talk with some of the families of those who have been murdered, many under the age of 10 years old.

All lives are precious, but I am having a hard time watching my president fly to Newtown, which is about s 844 miles east of Chicago; but, he can’t walk a couple blocks from his house in Chicago.

I won’t apologize for thinking that maybe it has something to do with the zip code of the two cities or the polar opposite economic levels between the two cities.  You always try to give a sitting president the benefit of the doubt, but in President Obama’s case, I doubt if there is any benefit.

Staff Writer; Raynard Jackson

Mr. Jackson is also founder of a political and industrial consultant firm which is based in Washington, DC; Raynard Jackson & Associates.

 


Comments

5 Responses to “Hadiya Pendleton Death, President Obama Neglects Own Backyard.”
  1. Ford says:

    ….I heard on the news this morning the unfortunate young lady was killed by gang scum that couldn’t shoot straight. She was, of course, not the intended target. Here is my bitch. We’re being treated like it’s grade school. One kid pisses off the teacher the WHOLE CLASS pays. Remember that? Now it’s Obama and crew making ALL who wish to own guns pay for the actions of the insane and worthless gang scum shit. The WHOLE CLASS detention didn’t make any sense in school and sure as hell doesn’t make any sense as adults and the stakes are light years beyond grade school. Instead of taking away our second amendment rights take care of the REAL PROBLEM!!! Make it easier to commit the dangerously insane. Do sweeps through gang infested neighborhoods and take THEIR guns away not mine. Under age or felons with guns bust um. Adults with guns posing no problem….no problem.

  2. realman says:

    I personally don’t have a problem with guns as long as gun owners are responsible people who have been trained to use fire arms. But as for assault weapons, now that’s another story, no individual citizen should be allowed to own one.

  3. Ford says:

    @ Ramses:
    My wife is getting her concealed carry. Went to buy shells for our sweet speed six and the shelves are empty. Wal-mart nothing. Dicks had a delivery on Saturday and the clerk said there was a long line and the ammo sold out in twenty minutes. Went online…..sold out. Thought well it’s about time we loaded our own…..sold out. I have never seen anything like this. Obama is trying to take this country hard left and grab our guns. I think the empty shelves are saying the country is beginning to get it’s back up.

  4. Ramses says:

    I plan on joining the NRA because you have to be protected against these insane criminals out here and I’m a Moor saying that…I do not agree that guns are evil. If someone invaded this country, you people would be begging the military to get their guns to defend you. The inner-city is filled with criminal-minded black men…this is just fact. There are plenty of people who come to America and are poor and they don’t buy into criminal behavior. So we can’t say that this is because these people are poor. It’s the lack of honor black people have developed over a course of time that has kept them addicted t drugs, selling drugs, and prostitution out here including strippers. when you have females who as soon as they graduate high school going into the stripping industry, then you know you have some serious problems. I met a black chick a few months ago who said she started stripping at 16 and was having sex with females as well at this age. I mean what can you do with that for real? Now I understand why Pac used the word “hopeless” all the time. He was in his late teens and early twenties using the world hopeless. That’s sad indeed.

  5. ulo media says:

    It’s the deteriorating black communities from being neighborhoods to hoods where no one gives a damn about each other. Obama can’t do Anything about that. The black community is falling into a downward spiral that seemingly has no chance of recovering for many more decades. Latinos and Asians will be far ahead of and we Will continue to listen to Gangster rap which Destroys our young men.

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=YjJ0si69j54&feature=relmfu

Speak Your Mind

Tell us what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!