Young, Black and Gay in the City

James
November 4 2005, 12:27PM

Isn't there a way we can come together as a community to protect our children from these online predators? This is really sad, and what's sadder is the total lack of concern exhibited by the authorities.

Yet they are still out there looking for Natalie Holloway in Aruba.

Thanks Keith for keeping the memories of our missing children alive by posting updates on their cases.

phd2b11
November 4 2005, 1:37PM

Simply saddening...I pray for their safe returns.

Mel Smith
November 4 2005, 2:34PM

This is sad and I hope these kids are ok. I also hope that a person is not going around stalking and killing young black gay youth. Sometimes I hate this evil world we are living in.

jazzi
November 4 2005, 4:13PM

I used to think gay kids today had it easier than I did. More resources, alternative schools, & a seemingly growing acceptance in the mainstream media. In spite of all of the above, I see that the youth are still lacking that safe space to call their own.

As for chatrooms & online hook-ups, it can't be stressed enough that one must be careful. Meeting up with someone you don't even know could have fatal consquences. Our youth needs to understand this. Just because you've had a few chat sessions with someone online doesn't mean you know them. His mom said she knew he was talking to grown men online. He's only 15 yrs old. What did she do about this? Did she even try to stop it? I sincerely hope this young boy did run away & is reunited with his family soon. My prayers go out to his mother. I can't even begin to imagine what she's going through.

I try to be objective & not jump to conclusions with the media but it's become increasingly obvious that we don't really count for shit to them unless there's a shooting in the hood or a drug bust. This kid has been missing since August? It's been three months & this is the first that I've of this.

jazzi
November 4 2005, 4:13PM

I used to think gay kids today had it easier than I did. More resources, alternative schools, & a seemingly growing acceptance in the mainstream media. In spite of all of the above, I see that the youth are still lacking that safe space to call their own.

As for chatrooms & online hook-ups, it can't be stressed enough that one must be careful. Meeting up with someone you don't even know could have fatal consquences. Our youth needs to understand this. Just because you've had a few chat sessions with someone online doesn't mean you know them. His mom said she knew he was talking to grown men online. He's only 15 yrs old. What did she do about this? Did she even try to stop it? I sincerely hope this young boy did run away & is reunited with his family soon. My prayers go out to his mother. I can't even begin to imagine what she's going through.

I try to be objective & not jump to conclusions with the media but it's become increasingly obvious that we don't really count for shit to them unless there's a shooting in the hood or a drug bust. This kid has been missing since August? It's been three months & this is the first that I've of this.

Kenneth Winfrey
November 4 2005, 4:26PM

The exploitation of SGL youth is rampant. From pedophilia, to the homophobia at home that has many of us living on the street, gay youth are among the most vulnerable groups in society.

Can an organization like the NBJC, for example, take up the causes of SGL youth and help to organize us to overcome this?

cmoney
November 4 2005, 4:35PM

I hope people will someday understand that people who attack children or take advantage of them are sick, disturbed criminals. Not gay. Not straight. Criminals. The news media and conservatives will focus on the gay and the sexual part while ignoring the fact that these crimes can happen to children of any orientation or children who aren't even sure of their sexual orientation. We should not let the "child molester" label be wrapped around the gay community. That would be letting too many "straight" pedophiles off the hook.

Damion
November 4 2005, 5:24PM

Since the government is nowadays promoting abstinance, i think they should kick it up a notch as far internet safety goes. When i was a teen I was into meeting guys online because i'm from a podunk town and little or no gaydar at the time. As a teen, I never imagined that the guy i was going to meet could end up crazy. Luckily, it has never happened to me. But this is a growing trend. Kids, gay and straight, need to be taught caution when meeting someone off the net.

Forever Barri
November 5 2005, 10:19AM

What a sad, but interesting case here. What an event it is for a 14-year-old minority male to confide in his mother about his sexual interest, when we have dozens of adult males who dwell in the darkness of the "DL". However, did Edmond's early coming out party cheat him out of his development in becoming a "gay, street savvy" male while further placing him in the realms of the "homophobic, sick and deranged" wolves that prowl the streets of society? Can we possibly say that perhaps, had Edmond remained in the closet, he may not have acted on his sexual curiosity? Who knows? I just hope he returns to his mother as the 14 year old that vanished back in August.

viqifrench
November 6 2005, 1:42PM

I hope the disappearance of these boys sparks more national discussion about the sexual predators that parents unwittingly allow around their sons. It seems they just don't have the tools -- or guts -- to better guide their boys in this regard.

I could be way off base, but it seems likely that some mucked-up, out-of-control adult around this child may have introduced him to the life. And the possibility of that sickens me. I know too many men (both gay and hetero) who were molested as children, and something of that trauma has stayed with them to this day.

I recently saw a startling Oprah episode where a pro footballer discussed his stepfather's abuse. He and his tearful mother (seated in the front row) still hadn't talked about what happened to him decades ago. And that's a big part of the problem: black parents are not equiped for healthy conversations about sexuality.

I pray these boys are found alive. And God, give their mothers and fathers the strength to build their esteem if/when they return.

Regan DuCasse
November 6 2005, 2:37PM

A predatory adult is a predatory adult.
I too have been VERY concerned with the unique problems this poses for gay youth, but also for innocent gay men.

This phenom cuts across ALL lines and every well meaning adult has a responsibility to understand that sexual orientation isn't the issue, but the vulnerability of young people and what young kids are at the greatest risk.

Heterosexual predators don't nearly make the news or investigatory object of journalists.
Especially FEMALE predators of young boys.

The prejudice that blinds the judiciary, penal and criminal justice systems, dovetails with that of foster care, welfare and school systems as well.

My heart is so broken over the loss of these boys.
I work for the LAPD in the forensic photo unit.
I have been working hard to tell those who write with prejudice about gay issues concerning crime, that gay people are the least of society's worries.
Adult predators come in all stripes and it has to be our business to know our target and where they are.
Prejudicing the public so that their vigilance is misdirected serves nothing, least of all the potential victims.
That's the prejudice that predators hope for.

I'm still PISSED that Michael Jackson got off. There is a classic case of a predatory pedophile with abuse and identity issues in his background and the jury was too damn dumb and agenda bound to care.
I didn't just look at a single witness to blow the case.
The most TELLING evidence of all, was the parade of Jackson's alleged victims who were so similar, had similar parental structures and issues.
In law enforcement 101, you look for a pattern or a break in one.
And Jackson's parade of similar victims, wouldn't have BEEN so similar in the first place if he he'd been innocent.
Innocents don't have such screamingly obvious M.O's.
He wasn't the only one of a high profile.
My unit investigated character actor Jeffrey Jones. He's an ephebophiliac that liked child porn and took his own explicit pictures of underage boys. And his friend, Paul Rubens, literally a minute after his probation, was caught sharing that porn with Jones.

Our society isn't well educated on the motives or typical predator.
And they aren't because they really don't WANT to know.
They would rather capitulate to prejudice against gay men, than be careful about ALL adults and their access to children and the typical profession or hobby of child predators.
I pray for these children.
Some of them are brought to be photographed by the unit because they are runaways and Hollywood is a notorious magnet for them.
I keep the hotline numbers of
Children of the Night
Covenant House
Jeff Griffith Youth Shelter on my speed dial at all times.
I know the ramifications for gay kids especially.
And I think my anger and the general public and it's prejudice is well founded.
They can't be pushed enough to know the real deal.
If they REALLY cared about kids, they wouldn't MIND being pushed.
So shove them, and HARD.
And maybe children like Edmond won't go missing so easily and often.

Regan DuCasse
November 6 2005, 2:42PM

And Keith, thank you for posting this.
Oprah is on a crusade against child predators, and it wouldn't hurt to let her in on this case.

I look at this handsome boy, there's a touch of sadness in his expression.
He deserves better of our attention and care as adults and our own experiences with abuse or that of our peers.

Tony
November 6 2005, 7:13PM

It's crying shame that older men (and others) are molesting these innocent young men.