Loss of Two Students

It has been almost a month since we lost two students to street violence at Charlotte High School, Both students were freshman and their lost was deeply felt by everyone in the building. Read more about what occured here on the Democrat & Chronicle .

The first couple of days back were a little rough with students asking questions of why, and having difficulty dealing with the lost of someone whom they had known.

Looking back, our students were great, they were very open to healthy dialogue on about their emotions and thoughts. They also used various venues to release there emotions such as creating cards, signing the students lockers and leaving messages on the poster hanging in the cafeteria. Many of the students also attended the funeral services of both students.

Still to this date there is no information on who committed this crime and why. A lot of what we have heard is just speculation. Some of the dialogue I had with students in classes was about the importance of reporting whatever they may know. I was mainly trying to address the issue of "snitching." One of the main areas of concerns in school and in urban environments.

One particular dialogue sticks out in my mind. I asked the students why don't students "snitch" or report crimes? The one student who raised her hand first, turned and looked at me and said, "Mr. Soler, we know what's right and what's wrong, but you gotta understand that we live in those neighborhoods and if we tell someone, that person we told doesn't necessarily go back to that neighborhood but we do."

Those comments really pointed to the immense presence of fear that exist in inner-city communities. She was 100% right many of us involved with students in urban schools do not live in the same neighborhoods. I found myself stuck and I didn't really know how to respond to her, other then saying you must use schools and education as the way out to better yourself, and family.

I ended my visit by saying, "All we have is each other!"

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¡Viviendo el Sueño! (Living the Dream!)
Mr. Anibal Soler, Jr.
http://www.anibalsoler.com
http://anibalsoler.blogspot.com