Time to Stop the Senseless Murders

The recent murder of a black teenager in Chicago by several other black youths has refocused our attention on the need to become involved in sharing our enlightenment experiences with others.

Today, as it was many yesterdays ago, we are discovering that there's a void of morality existing within so many people. It's difficult for many people, who believe they are victimized by their environments, to find the courage to change how they think and live. Sadly, their behavior is responsible for the deaths of thousands of young people each year.

The more we complain the more the violence seems to escalate. The more we retreat into our homes, close the doors and windows to the world outside, the more we become victims of youth terrorism. And, as victims, we believe all we can do is pray, hope, and curl up in fear, hoping the problem will solve itself. Unfortunately, we're just daydreaming.

The violence that's destroying the fruit of black, brown, and white families is spreading at a cancerous pace throughout the country. And unless those of us who know better do better, we will find ourselves mired in a quagmire of endless social destruction.

For us to change the attitudes and beliefs destroying so many young people, we must be willing to change our own attitudes and beliefs. This means parents, teachers, community and religious leaders must all begin to examine our own behavior. We must ask ourselves: what are we teaching our children?

In many cases, we don't have sufficient control over our own emotions to teach them anything, except how to perpetuate victim lifestyles. In other words, the violence and the beliefs stoking it, come from somewhere in our society. Whether we like it or not, some of us are directly responsible for what's happening in our neighborhoods.

For those of us committed to achieving enlightenment, this is an opportunity to evaluate our progress. We can teach others -- parents, adults, young people, and so forth -- how to overcome the victim beliefs that's causing the violence. We can provide them with examples of how to think, act, and live peaceful in the world.

Meanwhile, we can begin by embodying some healthy daily habits to empower our minds and bodies with nutrients that promote healthy attitudes and actions. Here's a few things we can do now:

1. Cook our children healthy meals.
2. Spend time with them.
3. Refrain from cursing and drinking, particularly in the presence of children.
4. Treat others with respect.
5. Think before spanking our children. (It's probably good not to spank them. And if you believe it's necessary, then refrain from beating them).
6. Watch television as a family. (Monitor our children and prevent them from watching television alone for hours on end.)
7. Encourage social interaction by inviting our neighbors' children over and vice versa.
8. Teach our children the benefits of having moral principles to guide them in making decisions.
9. Teach them to love themselves and believe in themselves.
10. Teach them how to envision themselves with the power to overcome the obstacles they face in their lives.

For things to change, we must become the vanguard to bring the change. For some additional information, please read "Seeds from the Ashes" by linking to https://www.createspace.com/3400868 or http://www.amazon.com/