The same night that many Floridians were following the exciting political races for governor and senator, two children were shot in Jacksonville leaving cheerleading practice. This shooting took place adjacent to a park in the Northside of Jacksonville and sent parents and children scrambling for cover.
Every political candidate I heard on Tuesday night promised a better Florida. Yet during the campaign parties with streamers, balloons and TV coverage, two young girls were shot and had to watch one of their parents being murdered in Jacksonville. This incident should provoke outrage in the city for a number of reasons:
1. The police indicated it may be connected to drug activity in the area.
2. A large number of parents and children ( who had nothing to do with this incident) were put in danger - simply because they were at cheerleading and football practice at a public park.
3. No candidate that I heard Tuesday night talked about this type of violence.
4. If this incident took place at another location in Jacksonville such as the Beaches or Avondale, there would be widespread justifiable outrage.
Let me be clear. The murderer in this incident is responsible for this act, but our community as a whole is responsible for our reaction to this
tragedy. To his credit, Sheriff Rutherford has moved quickly to raise the profile of this terrible crime. The rest of us (media, academia, community leaders and citizens) need to join in.
The Times Union reported this morning that the mayor's anti-crime initiative, the Jacksonville Journey, may face deep funding cuts. Does this make any sense after the horror of Tuesday night?
Nicely done, Matt
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