Throughout the years, we have seen many hate crime cases that include teenagers. Most of the victims who survived a hate crime, either are traumatized or dead. It is shown on social media, newspaper and some of us have experience it. On November 13, 2018, the Federal Bureau of Investigation released hate crime statistics for the year 2017. The percentage increased around 17 percent. By the studies, in the year 2017, 7,175 hate crime cases were reported. After the information given about 1,130 was based on a teenager’s sexual orientation bias. A total `of 119 on gender identity bias. Though, not only the LGBTQ community is affected, there are also the crimes committing based on race, ethnicity, and religion to mention a few. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation anti-black crimes increased by 1,700 cases from 2016-2017. Black people having the highest percentage of hate crimes. In addition, hate crimes motivated based on religious increased by a twenty three percent in 2017.
Article published in the New York Times and tilted, ‘We Must Be Better’: A Young Black Student Takes His Own Life. Dated the 27 of April of 2019 and author Pierre-Antoine Louis. This article relates to a contemporary race/ethnicity issue because of the racist people in the world that hate on other people’s skin color, culture, and homosexuality. Therefore, it leads them to have suicidal thoughts or worst, commit suicide. In Huntsville, Alabama a 15-year-old teenager commits suicide after being bullied by his high school peers. Nigel Shelby, the 9th grader, attended Huntsville High School. He was only a freshman and was already experiencing bullying for simply being homosexual.
The author of the articles claims that he went through the same situation at a young age. Though, he hardly understood the homophobic slurs his peers would throw at him. He always felt different because of the way those students made him feel. The article states, ”74 percent of L.G.B.T.Q youths say they do not feel safe in the schools they attend,” according to the Center for Social Equity, a nonprofit organization. The article also tells us that most of the time the majority of the students do not feel comfortable telling their parents about their homosexuality. Studies indicate that black teenagers commit suicide to double a higher rate than white teenagers. Like several cases, this case is a difficult and heartbreaking one. This human being had a whole life ahead of him. He ended his life to stop the pain he suffered. There are many schools’ which students are being bullied and still do nothing about it.
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All they do is talk to the person and that’s it. Schools should be stricter about the school policies. When the author states,” I was fighting both racism and homophobia while also trying to figure out who I was, I bottled up all my emotions hoping that someone would notice how much pain I was in and hear my cry for help.” These words describe what many students go through and cannot get the help and support they need because of fear of denial. A person killing them self because he/she is not free to express their homosexuality and be proud of their race is horrendous. For example, a teenager not being able to handle bullying by his/her peers. When they feel like they no longer cannot deal with whatever they are going through, they decide to take the wrong steps. They stop suffering, but they pass the pain on to their family members. Every parent should know everything that goes on with their child.
Most importantly when they show that something is going wrong and inexplicit. These teenagers going through a tough situation should be comfort by their loved one. Schools should have punishments for the students who bully others. Possibly kick them out of school, because of them, teenagers do things they are not supposed to. Though, that is not an option, but these teenagers need to get educated. Sometimes it is hard for them to be educated if their parents are exactly the same. In addition, as years pass the number of cases will keep increasing and we will have higher percentages in the near future.
Proceeding to the next case about a fourteen-year-old African American who was wrongfully convicted. He was named George Junius Stinney Jr. George was born on October 21, 1929 in Pinewood, South Carolina. He grew up in Alcolu, South Carolina where he lived with his: father George Stinney, his mother Aime, his two brothers and two sisters. He was only 14 years of age when he was accused of first-degree murder, making him the youngest person to be executed in the United States. He was accused of murdering two white girls. The two girls were Betty June Binnicker, 11 years, and Mary Emma Thames, 7 years old. According to the article, Betty and Mary were riding their bicycles and came across George and his sister. George and Aime were at their property when Betty and Mary were approaching.
The two girls were looking for Maypops, which are flowers. They asked George and Aime if they knew where they could find them, but they said no and went on their way. They became missing and based on the court documents, that was the last time they were seen alive. The next day, both girls’ bodies were found in a ditch with their bikes on top of them. Betty and Marry were beaten to death, their head was smashed with what appeared to be a hammer. When it was known that the two girls were last seen talking to George the police arrived at his home and questioned him. After he was questioned, the police claimed that he confessed he tried having sex with one of the girls. Then he was taken to Sumter County jail. He was then interrogated without a witness nor an attorney. About a month after the murders, trial began. The defense attorney, Charles Plowden a local attorney did not do much to defend his client.
After a two-hour trial, Plowden, refused and failed as an attorney because he did nothing to prove Georges innocence. Only evidence present at the moment was Georges confession made once, but no written record of the teen confirming the crimes. A 10-minute deliberation was taken and the jury whom was white declared George guilty. George was sentenced to death by electric chair that same day. On June 16, 1944 as George walked into the execution chamber, he carried a bible under his arm. Based on the article, he was put in an adult size electric chair where he was obligated to wear an adult size mask. As the first 2,400 volts surged through his body the mask slipped off and his eyes were full of tears. Second, 1,400 volts followed and after another 500 volts. He then was pronounced dead at around 7;30 pm of June 16,1944. It took 3 minutes and 45 seconds to kill an innocent 14-year-old teenager. In 2014, George Stinney was proven innocent.
Another case of hate crime and teenagers is Christopher Alaneme case. In 2006, 18 months before, Christopher left London to escape the violence seeking for a new beginning. According to the article, “How the killing of Christopher Alaneme is a shocking insight into racist Britain,” was stabbed to death in Sheerness, Kent. This 18-year-old boy was trying to protect his white 14-year-old friend. It was said that his attack was purposely and as a racist murder. Four men fought against Christopher where he was stabbed multiple times. A witness claims that Christopher blood was coming out “like a water fountain”.
The men who attacked and murdered Christopher were white. His father believed that they killed him simply because he was black. He was 6 feet and 4 inches tall, reason why the white men who killed him referred to him as ‘he is a big one, he stands out doesn’t he?’ and another person referred to him as ‘big black lad’. Both were reference to his skin color. He was another innocent teenager whom was killed for being a colored person. He liked to play the Xbox, hip hop and garage music and he enjoyed playing basketball and boxing. His 16-year-old girlfriend said they were looking forward to a new beginning together.
On March 24, 2012 Kendrec McDade was 19 years old when he was killed. He was shot by two police officers in Pasadena, California. According to the article “Kendrec McDade died in a hail of US police bullets in 2012. His mother still seeks justice”, he is one of many 219 African Americans have been murdered by police officers in 2015. Kendrec was unarmed and did not do anything to have been shot. The reason why the Pasadena police were chasing Kendrec because they thought he had a gun and a laptop which was reported stolen. According to the article the police lasted two days looking for those objects which were never found. Her mother till this day seeks for justice. The two police officers who killed him were given back their badge and put to work immediately.
Finally, the final case will be about a white family. In the article “Parents Killed After Warning Daughter About Boyfriends Racist View,” it explains how two parents were shot dead in the state of Virginia. Three days before Christmas they were shot by their daughters’ boyfriend,17 years. The parents, Scott Fricker and Buckley Kuhn-Fricker alerted their daughter because of his racist perspectives. After shooting both of the parents, the teenager shot himself after. Though he survived and it was said he was in a life threating condition. He was also charged with two murders.
The daughter who was 16 years of age at the time of the incident was prohibited to stop seeing the murderer. Before the teenager’s mom passing, she had contacted the administrators at the daughter’s school. She sent an email with images she saw of her daughter’s boyfriend that he would post on social media. His posts involucrate things such as homophobic content and other things that referred to Hitler. Mrs. Kuhn-Fricker said the following, “I would feel a little bad reporting him if his online access was to basically be a normal teen, but he is a monster, and I have no pity for people like that,” followed by “He made these choices. He is spreading hate.”
In conclusion, the statistics on crime and teenager and/or teenagers and crime have increased within the past years. Every day there are at least 130 incidents reported. The reason for this could be anything from sexual orientation to gender bias, religion and other reasons.
