Coming from the Southwest side of Detroit, opportunities were very poor, the bad ones outnumbering the good ones almost ten to one, with little likelihood of being successful or legit. I lost three relatives to gun-violence in one summer alone. Most of the friends I grew up with are either dead, on drugs, or in jail.
I’m older now. I spend most of my time studying and manifesting connections that support self-help and development. My agenda now is to make a difference. I understand what happened to us, and where we went wrong and what it takes to avoid a place like ‘this’, where the system is broken and built to further break you. Contrary to rehabilitating, it encourages criminality.
I once heard, “If you want to hide something from a negro, put it in a book…” Is there truth to this? I had to pick up a book or two to see what I had been missing all those years, things I didn’t understand that I let slide by without answers. One thing I learned is that the things a child sees, hears, and experiences throughout childhood, will most likely have a profound effect on that kid once they reach adulthood. The first traumatic memory I have is of me as a five year old standing in the middle of a stairwell watching my dad as he lay on our living room floor in a pool of his own blood due to gun violence. Later, at the age of ten I watched a young man shoot and kill his uncle in broad daylight.
Whether it was gun-violence I saw, domestic violence, sexual abuse or the drug infestation that overwhelmed my environment, it neither begins nor ends with ‘me’. This is an environmental disease that infects the minds and spirits of children in general – not just mine. Negative influence is a highly contagious virus and is able to transmute anything pure into poison.
Knowing the things I know today, makes it my responsibility to help the kids, the most vulnerable to the negativity and the ones who will grow to pass the illness from one individual to the next. It is my responsibility to help them make better decisions and provide them with solutions that discourage violence and trauma, and encourage love and longevity.
My son just turned thirteen years old. After being absent in his life for ten years, one of the first things he spoke to me about was needing help surviving his future. I needed guidance and help as a kid and now – they need me. They need us.
ABOUT THE WRITER. Mr. Johnson is a welcome new member of our writing family. His piece reflects a reality that we hear about all too often, but one he hopes to impact through his writing. Mr. Johnson can be contacted at:
John Johnson #631054
Baraga Correctional Facility
13924 Wadaga Road
Baraga, MI 49908
