Something is definitely wrong

May 11, 2009 Letters

Dear Editor,

When one reads the news of the goings on in Guyana today, you cannot help but say “something has gone drastically wrong with society, Black society.”

The events are spine chilling, take an audit of some recent developments – woman brutally murdered in Angoys Avenue; woman and children brutally murdered in Ithaca; GPL Security Officer shot dead in Sophia; taxi driver tortured and killed and the list goes on. Crime is a sad fact of life everywhere you turn and the disregard for the sanctity of human life is an ever present reality.

You would have noticed that my list does not include armed robbery and other gun crimes.

The reason for me not mentioning these is the mind boggling nature of the statistics! So how did we get to this point?

It seems to me that Black youth have lost their way, things like respect for law and order, family values and the like are not household norms anymore.

Single parenting is one of the root causes for this dilemma. Studies have shown that many homes headed by a single parent is a breeding ground for criminals, because youngsters in such circumstances lack the stability and guidance needed to take them through life. Black family structure worldwide show a dismal comparison to other racial groups.

The situation is even more tragic when you witness the example set by some “so called leaders” of the Black community.

They are known to have issued guns to their adherents who were instructed to rob and kill persons of a certain race and political grouping. Such is the sad state of affairs in my country.

Neil Adams