San Francisco Supervisor Calls On African American Community To Turn In Their Kids If They're Involved In Gun Violence
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – San Francisco Board of Supervisors President London Breed is taking a strong stance, calling on members of the African American community to turn their kids in if they know they are involved in gun violence.
"I think that parents are aware. I think that there is an intuition that exists within a parent, within a family member. You know what is going on in the streets," Breed told KCBS. "When you're from the community, you know what's going on, you know who's involved in these kinds of things. I think there are a lot more people who know what's going on, but they choose not to get involved or say anything because they come from a culture of not snitching."
Breed's message comes shortly after four African American men were shot and killed in a stolen car at the corner of Laguna and Page streets in the Hayes Valley neighborhood which Breed represents.
"The problem is, our kids are dying. So either they're going to sadly kill someone or someone is going to kill them. We don't want to see this violence continue to happen on our streets," she said.
After speaking at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. observance at Yerba Buena Gardens on Monday, Breed said she held a community meeting. While she knows the importance of bringing job opportunities and job programs to the African American community and making the education system better, she also believes the onus has to fall on parents and kids. "Most important, we have to look inside our homes and determine what is needed and what we can do in order to make our kid's lives better, and also hold them accountable to do the right thing."
Breed, who herself is African American, grew up in San Francisco's public housing and knows the experience many are facing firsthand. One of her brothers is in prison and her sister died of a drug overdose.
"My grandmother was straight-up. It was black and white, right and wrong. You didn't do the wrong thing, you did the right thing and you treated people right," Breed said. "And she never deviated from that. I think we have to get back to some basics in our community and talk to our young people, saying hello to them, asking them how their day is, and getting more actively engaged in what's going on in their life."
She said the community is hurting and they can't continue to look to the government for help and support.
