New Haven Independent

By Ronald Solomon Huggins Jr.

While waking up over a schoool break at 4:30 in the morning is a challenge for most students, it wasn’t for the 25 students who had to be at New Haven police department at 5 o’clock to take part in a bus ride to the Great Black Wax Museum in Baltimore, Maryland.

At 5:30 the people on the bus enjoyed a breakfast at McDonalds that was paid for by
police department PAL program under officer Marcus Tavares and Nancy Jordan. This trip not only included kids, but it also included a host of other people like truancy officers, corection officers, school teachers and police officers.

During this four-and-a-half-hour trip issues, pertaining to the inner-city community violence was discussed. I asked what some some of the benefits were of going on this trip. Officer Tavares responded that from learning our history, we learn what our ancestors went through and hopefully that will prevent young people from killing each
other over nonsense.

Once at the museum the kids on the bus were in awe over being able to see history virtually. Yvonne White, 18, of Hillhouse, said that this experience was very exciting: “Being able to see all the different was sculptures made me understand black history and how we as a race has progressed from being slaves and slave-minded to being free as humans and free in our minds.”

Justin Pittman, 13, who attends Sheirdan Academy, said after seeing the lynching exhibit he believes that they were real brutal but also believes that lynching is still going on in our society.

Chantel Morrison agreed that literal lynchings aren’t going on today but that we as a people are lynching ourselves with drugs, alcohol and guns.

Officer Dewlyne Ponteau, a school resource officer at Hillhouse, said, “This trip was very educational, and It showed some of the struggles that are ancestors have gone through.”

Shelia Little, chief clerk at Hillhouse, said while viewing the exhibits, “The harsh reality of what our ancestors endured really hit home. Our struggles still continue to this day.”

The sad truth is that homicide is the leading cause of death among black males aged 15 to 24. Between 1976 and 2008, 94 percent of black murder victims were killed by black offenders.

The exhibits were really educational. I plan on sharing with my peers what I learned and trying to find away to stop youth from lynching themselves from drugs, alcohol, guns and irresponsible activities like unprotected sex.