A teenager was murdered in Cleveland yesterday. Where is the outrage?

A 14-year-old male was shot and killed while taking out the garbage in an apartment building in downtown Cleveland yesterday. Police are asking residents of the Allerton Apartments, where the shooting happened, to provide information as they search for the boy’s killer.

Good luck with that.

The tired phrase “if you see something, say something” doesn’t work in communities where speaking up could result in retaliation. It’s all about survival and looking out for yourself and your own family. Keeping your mouth shut means that your child will have a better chance of not being the next victim.

It sounds cold and callous, but that’s how it is. And the greater Cleveland community is just as silent as those living in these dangerous areas. They’ve become inured to the stories of shootings and stabbings. It’s a shame it’s a child, but that’s how it is “over there,” they tell themselves.

Truthfully, much of the work to stop the carnage has to happen from the inside. Parents need to get fed up with children killing or being killed. Communities have to do everything possible to keep children away from drugs, guns, knives, etc.

That is easier said than done.

Kids get pulled into dangerous situations on these streets all the time. The lure of money, the desire to relieve boredom and the chance to feel like you’re really doing something (even if it’s illegal and potentially deadly) are enough to pull in many kids without the resources to know better. Then there are the children who try to stay on the straight path but get hurt anyway.

The city should do something, too, of course. Where is the outcry from the Cleveland leaders? Yes, the city needs to develop the lakefront and boost economic prospects, but how can that be done while ignoring the violence in nearby communities? Perhaps a start would be for city officials to say, “We have to make this a world-class city, but we’re not doing it unless everybody is on board.”

That’s also easier said than done.

We have no idea if the teenager killed yesterday was part of a gang, if someone had a beef against him, if he got caught in the middle of a shootout, or if it was a freak accident. We may never know. What we can be sure of right now is that this won’t be the last deadly tragedy in Cleveland. Another family will lose a child; another seat in a classroom will stay empty.

What’s it going to take to make this stop?

First, we have to understand how it started. That’s a broad question with multiple answers, but the Critical Reader will try to address it in upcoming newsletters.