The conversation went like this…

*Phone rings* (It’s my mom)

Me: *Answers* Hello?

Mom: Where are you (in a panic like tone)?

Me: At Chick-Fil-A redeeming my free chicken sandwich, what’s up?

Ma: Where are you going afterwards?

Me: (Hesitant as to why she’s asking so many questions and sounding alarmed) Home.

Ma: You’re going straight home from there?

Me: Uhm yeah, what’s wrong? (I just lost a cousin the day before so now I’m thinking something else has happened).

Ma: Oh, ok because on the news down here (NC) they’re saying that a lot of women are getting snatched up and going missing up there (DC)…

I knew what she was talking about but if this were a month ago I would’ve had no idea. You see I initially didn’t find out what was going on until my cousin who lives in NY made a Facebook post about it urging girls in the area to be safe (the majority of the missing girls are African American (but there are a few boys too) and there are a few Hispanic girls). I work a lot and honestly don’t really watch television as often as I used to (literally may watch 2 hrs of TV from Monday-Friday and catch up on what I’ve missed on the weekends) and I’m never home and when I get home watching TV is not on my mind. Soon, I began to see more and more people posting about it within a couple of days and it just seemed odd to me that it was something that was recurring at such an alarming rate. I listen to the radio and began to hear them bringing awareness to it (it may be on the news now I don’t know-I don’t really watch TV like that).

Speculations are out and I’ve heard everything from possible sex trafficking, to gang initiations to organ harvesting (that last one I had to look up because I was sure it couldn’t be what I thought it was and it is)…just crazy! People have said that people in DC go missing a lot (I was unaware) but they said not at the rate that this is happening and something is clearly going on. Now with the outcry coming from many different directions, DC law officials have no choice but to try to figure out whats’s going on because this can’t be ignored. I don’t blame anyone for not being aware that this is happening because the media doesn’t report everything and really only seem to report urgent matters like this about African Americans once we the public already know about it. But what I will say is where are all of these “United we stand people” that came out and supported the Women’s March and A Day Without A Woman (I’m not talking about the organizers but the participants)? Pardon me, but do black lives matter to you or not (and this is not addressed to those that are worried and concerned or those who may be just now finding out about this-this is for those who know and don’t care) because in reality if our lives really did matter to you like you say “All for one and one for all,” this would be everywhere. I just feel like quite a few people are all for the Kum ba ya moment when it’s a cause they support but turn a blind eye and a deaf ear when an injustice is going on that doesn’t concern them; those are the real hypocrites and shame on you.

I saw something disturbing on my Facebook feed where a girl (a black girl at that) said she doesn’t care and called everyone hypocrites that aren’t helping to do something or at least putting forth the effort (at least bring awareness). The last part I can understand but not caring about these missing girls simply because they have no direct correlation to you is just cold but she has a right to her opinion even though I don’t like it. There’s a Facebook live town hall meeting today at 1pm and I’ll definitely be tuning in to see what’s being done on the matter and how we as a community can help. Born and raised from DC, I consider this my city and when shit goes down that I don’t like I have a problem with it (and a lot goes down). The key is finding the solution to those problems. The article I read yesterday just yesterday said that 14 girls in DC have gone missing within 24 hours, 24 hours! Keep your eyes open people and PAY ATTENTION (and trust me that means myself included)!

Update: The police department are utilizing social media more to bring awareness to the cases (hence the many cases of missing teens but that still doesn’t take away the fact from a large number of them going missing within a short time frame).

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(Source of picture: DC Metropolitan Police Department)