Thugs don’t make good friends

The Other Side, Fairfield Daily Repulic 7-14-11
By Kelvin Wade

This week is the 20th anniversary of the release of John Singleton’s movie, “Boyz N The Hood.”

When it was released, I went to see it downtown at the Fairfield Cinema II. The movie is about a single black father trying to raise his son, Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.), to avoid the pitfalls of living in South Central Los Angeles. Tre’s best friend is killed in a drive-by shooting and Tre goes out with his boys looking for revenge. The crucial scene comes when Tre gets out of the car before doing anything stupid.

I was reminded of the movie when I heard about the five teenage suspects arrested for the robbery of Travis Dairy and killing of owner Ho J. Kim. If these five young people committed this crime, they’ve not only taken a life but they’ve thrown their own lives away.

I was optimistic that arrests would be made in this case, due to the multiple assailants, witnesses and the hard work of Fairfield police who have really been on their game lately. Everyone involved in making these arrests possible deserves to be commended.

In the wake of this horrific crime arises a teachable moment. This is a cautionary tale for young people and parents. It doesn’t matter if you’re a “good kid” if you’re running with a bad crowd. You have to change your course.

It’s too easy to get caught up in bad situations if you’re with the wrong people. When I was around 22, my friend Joel brought a friend he’d recently met, “Mario,” to a barbecue with my friends and me. No one else knew Mario, but we accepted him because he was a friend of Joel’s. The more I interacted with this guy, the more I didn’t like him. He loved to talk about gangs and fights. When we later found out that the Mexican Mafia was looking for Mario, we never hung out with him again.

When I first met Matt Garcia, I told him this story. He shared some stories with me. It’s no secret that Matt had friends and relatives involved in gangs. A large part of his appeal is that he was a young person who could’ve easily went down that road himself but chose to walk a different path.

As parents, it’s important to know your child’s friends and with whom they’re hanging out. Of course, you can’t be with your teenager 24-7. That’s why impressing upon them the importance of leaving bad situations and people is so vital.

If there’s a community that’s sick of crime it’s Fairfield. We’re tired of being on the news for senseless acts of violence.

While we’re a compassionate community that reaches out to young people with opportunities like the Matt Garcia Youth Center, we don’t tolerate crime. If these five young defendants are convicted, they deserve stiff penalties.

When I watched “Boyz N The Hood” all those years ago, the crowd in the theater actually booed when Tre got out of the car. The audience, like Tre, was angry, caught up in the moment and wanted revenge. But Tre coming to his senses is the point of the movie. It only takes a moment of stupidity for your life to change forever. But before you get to that point, get out of the car. Peace.

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ADDITIONAL NOTES: I know why kids join gangs. I know why they become wannabes. It's so easy to get caught up in drama. I think most people can look back at some crazy things they've done in their youth. But some of those things can change the course of your life in a matter of minutes. I wasn't an angel growing up in Fairfield. But you have to know when to bail. Often groups of people will do things that the same people wouldn't do individually.

I really hope parents and teens look at this case as a wake up call. It doesn't take long at all to do something senseless that may cost you your freedom.