The murder of Hadiya Pendelton, who would’ve been 18 today, inspires a Chicago author to harness youth voices to solve gun violence.
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“Gone but never forgotten” is a phrase we as Americans use more that we’d like, and its often said in conjunction with memorializing those taken via gun violence.
It’s a term I use almost weekly when paying tribute to my fellow Chicagoans who are gunned down.
Among those individuals who met an unfortunate and untimely fate was a mentee of mine, Ms. Hadiya Pendleton. She would’ve been 18 years-old today.
Next week she would’ve walked across the stage with her graduating class and transitioned on to her next phase in life. However, due to a case of mistaken identity, she was
murdered.
Her death taught me the true meaning of the phrase “Gone but never forgotten.”
After she passed, I mentored her classmates with rigor, and have been blessed to watch more than 200 teenagers grow from her tragedy. They took “honoring a name” to another level.
They didn’t just say we miss you and post a cute hashtag. They really began to align their words with their lifestyles. Hadiya’s selflessness and ambition has radiated through their ways and actions.
As a mentor, it’s so easy to get caught up in thinking of ways that you can inspire and help to productively change the lives of those under you. But the one thing that’s not so easy to comprehend is that effective mentoring isn’t about just giving, but learning from those you mentor.
Working with Hadiya’s class at King College Prep in Chicago has taught and inspire me more than I could’ve ever imagined. Their success caused a shift in the way i thought about, and advocated for, gun violence prevention and safer communities in America.
For example, when I participated in the Cities United Convening held in Philadelphia last month, which was convened to discuss how we can create safer communities, I and others pushed the message of letting the younger generation take the lead, as it’s their age group which is most impacted by this epidemic.
They are the individuals who can help create safer communities. They are the Calvary we’ve been waiting for.
I charge all of us to not only listen to the youth voice, but encourage the youth to embrace their voice.
As much as it hurts to think about Hadiya’s death, it’s because of it that her classmates and I work so rigorously to positively impact the lives of others, especially those on the verge of giving up.
No matter who you lost or how you lost them, it’s the way we live and the actions we take that really prove that they are gone and never forgotten.
Thanks for reading!
B.O.L.D member Richard Taylor, considered the voice of Chicago, is a best-selling author and motivational speaker. CLICK HERE to purchase his new book, “Between the Dream.”
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Photo: Oliver Teicke/Flickr