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Spartacus R.
editor of Global Africa Pocket News and author of "Violation" and "The Maat Mystery" takes another look at the world.

On Tuesday 28th November 2000, 10 year old Damilola Taylor was found dead in the stair well of a block of flats in Peckham, South London. He had been stabbed in the leg just a few hours earlier by what the media described as "three Black youths, aged between 11 and 15" .

As a parent myself, I can imagine how it felt for Damilola's parents to be told that their son had been murdered so close to the safety of his home. I cannot think of any worse news for a parent to receive. My heart bleeds for the whole family and I pray that our Ancestors (including Damilola) will protect and guide them safely through this grievous loss.

Within hours of the news breaking, Government ministers, police spokespersons and a host of other politicians and media mouths were screaming for more police on the beat in such "dangerous" areas as Peckham. Without exception, they chose to condemn Damilola's killers as "barbaric", "thugs", "criminals", etc., who had committed a most "heinous" and "outrageous" crime.

It was reported that Damilola was being bullied at school. The head teacher was heard to say on television, that it was a "minor" incident which had been "dealt with". Bullying is never a minor incident and it cannot be fully "dealt with" in a society where bullyism is openly practised by the highest authority. In this society, we celebrate and honour bully boys such as Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair as "strong leaders". It is this practice of praising the bully which makes her or him feel that theirs is the best way. So why should we expect any different from similarly weak minded children? When we stop supporting the top bullies in our society, our children will stop emulating them.

It has also been reported that adults who saw Damilola bleeding after the attack, ran away from him because they did not want to get "involved". They were at least as responsible for his death as the boys who stabbed him and ran away. By refusing to give him aid, they were involved in his killing. That could have been my son there, bleeding to death.

What kind of society allows their 11 year old children to carry knives and guns for the purpose of killing other children? Only a society whose members do not take responsibility for their own actions. Any place where two young boys can torture and cold-bloodedly murder little Jamie Bulger without the society examining itself, is the place where such a terrible tragedy as Damilola's death can occur and the most that will be expected to happen is that politicians will rush forward to push through yet more legislation specifically designed to punish the victims.

There are already more police on our streets than ever, particularly in areas with high concentrations of African people. But street crime has also increased in every part of the country. Some people are even suggesting a higher police profile in our schools as they do, but even armed police in schools have not stopped school bullying in the USA.

The bullies in authority guard their positions jealously. They know that if the people "take the law into their own hands" all forms of bullying (including their own) will cease. So, just like the notorious protection racketeers, they insist on dealing with other bullies on our behalf. I have such a situation with my children, where, my youngest son was being bullied and one of his sisters took care of the bully. She is now facing possible exclusion from the school for her decisive, heroic action, but her younger brother will not be bullied again. I suspect that if Damilola's brother or cousin or some other relative, had dealt directly with the kids who were bullying him, he would still be alive today.

Another young African boy is dead. That is one of the worst things that can happen to our community. Too many of our most precious jewels are being wasted by our own. But does that justify branding the boys who stabbed him as "brutal", "savage", "heartless" "murderers", when, at this point in time, all we know is that he was stabbed in the leg?

The tragedy of Damilola's death is compounded by the evidence, which suggests that the person who stabbed him was not intending to kill him. Our attitude to bullying made these bullies feel safe enough to "cut" him, just to scare him into submission. Yet killed he was. I would assume, also, that the people who saw him bleeding and walked away, did not intend that he should die. But the "If I don't interfere, the bully won't touch me" attitude prevailed. And die he did. Now we have a crescendo of voices braying for the blood of three African boys to be sacrificed on the altar of European "justice". If it was suggested that the boys who were seen running away were European (white) would there have been a clamour of anger for retribution from any of these politicians and media mouths? Not a murmur.

If Damilola was in fact stabbed by three African boys, it would not be sensible to hand them over to their enemy to be destroyed and used conveniently, as weapons in an ongoing propaganda war against our community. It is the responsibility of the African community to deal with those responsible in such a way that would firstly, punish them; secondly, compensate his family for their loss; thirdly, turn his killers into useful members of our community, to help prevent such tragedies from recurring. Failing that, the only alternative is to eliminate them from our midst like a cancerous growth.

It is time for us as a people, as Global Africans to take control of our own community and map out our own destiny. That means taking responsibility for everything we do or don't do, including the kind of children we are producing for our future.