Uncle Paris
Paris Powell, a 29-year-old unarmed African-American man was fatally shot while feeding the homeless on July 27, 2011. His pregnant wife and 3-year-old stepdaughter were both shot in the arm. Paris was my uncle. His murder still remains unsolved with no outcry, no protests, just his family and children left to pick up the pieces, never to gain closure.
At the time of my uncle’s death, I was just 9-years-old. I did not realize everything that was going on, nor the extent to what had occurred. Everything happened so fast. One day he was here, the next he was on life support. I remember standing in the hospital room next to his lifeless body and looking at his bandaged head and I could see the blood building up in the bandage at the spot where he’d been shot. He was connected to all these tubes and needles. Shortly after this moment, we had to take him off life support. Though he was taken away from us far too soon, his legacy continues through my family and I.
My uncle taught me many things that make up large parts of my identity. From him, I learned selflessness, perseverance, and purpose. He always worked towards bettering the lives of others. He never gave up. When he got knocked down, he would get right back up and try again. He was wronged in life by others countless times, but he still chose to do right by them. I find myself harnessing these characteristics. In my most challenging times, I think of him and what he has taught me, and find strength and direction in that.
Uncle Paris led me to my purpose in life. I want to help families who are victims of gun violence and serve the underserved. Serve families like mine. I am currently studying Business with a pre-law track and plan to attend law school following my undergraduate studies and work towards becoming a lawyer. I am ready to fight for our families. People are lost, broken, left wondering “why” or “what if”. Having seen the pain and struggle that my family has gone through, that my hometown has gone through, and that the Black community as a whole has gone through motivates me to fight for justice and true equality. Too many lives have been lost and too many tears have been shed. Our communities are in pain and need to heal, and I want to do everything in my power to succeed and to work towards better days. Things must change- we have to do better. We have to do better for ourselves, who wonder if we’ll be next, our children, who should be able to play at the park or go to a sleepover without fighting for their lives, and our communities, who are hurting. There must be a change for the better and I am making it my duty to help influence this change in honor of my Uncle Paris.
Works Cited
CBS San Francisco. “Man Shot While Feeding Oakland Homeless Dies.” CBS San Francisco, CBS San Francisco, 28 July 2011, sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2011/07/28/man-shot-while-feeding-oakland-homeless-dies/.
Marrujo, Robert. “Remembering Paris Powell.” San Leandro, CA Patch, Patch, 30 July 2012, patch.com/california/sanleandro/bp — remembering-paris-powell.
