Yasmin Shiraz

Chelsea King, 17

According to www.msnbc.com, a body recently found is likely to be missing teen, 17 year old, Chelsea King. Chelsea was a straight A student who’d gone missing 5 days prior.  John Albert Gardner, 30, was arrested on suspicion of rape and murder. To this I say, be as careful as you can when you see strangers. Even OLDER teens, you have to watch out. There are plenty of crazy, derelict, murderous people in this world. There’s been a lot said about being safe on the internet but you cannot be too trusting of anybody these days. The friendliest looking people could be the most messed up! Do not give a murderer or a rapist an opportunity to get close to you. Stay your distance. Here are some tips:

1. If you are in the mall and feel that you are being followed, have security walk you to your car.
2. If you are in the parking lot and see somebody strange or someone who appears to be doing something to someone, Call 911. Even if you’re wrong, if you’re right, you’ll never regret making this call.
3. If you see someone strange around school grounds, alert the principal, your parents and the police. ALL THREE. Don’t leave it up to the principal to do something, or your parents or the police. Let every adult you know and trust be aware that you’ve seen a stalkerish, stranger on or nearby school grounds.
4. Do not give people your real names, phone numbers or home addresses on the internet. I don’t care how sincere they appear to be. You don’t know ‘em and neither do I. Fake names only!
5. Do not meet up with anyone that you’ve connected with on the internet by yourself or without your can of mace! Seriously, you have to always think safety first!

I know I sound like I’m 100 today, but every time I see how someone’s life has been cut short, it makes me sick. And I want to think of ways to share information on how to be safe. So, be safe, people!

Me outside my screening in San Diego's Regal Cinema

Can She Be Saved? is an official selection of the 2010 NC Black Film Festival and I will be receiving their Emerging Filmmaker award. I wanna say thank you again to everyone who has supported the film and my work as a filmmaker. I can’t wait to see my new filmmaker family when I get there. (Coming Correct, I see you! Father’s Day, I see you!)

Here’s the trailer in case you haven’t seen it.

Here’s a new letter that I received a few days ago from a Retaliation reader.

Dear Ms. Shiraz,

I’ve become one of your biggest fans. I read your book Retaliation which you said was not a true (story.) But to me, it felt real. I cried because it reminded me of my old life when I lived in Maryland. I lost my cousin to a gang in 2008. I looked up to him just like Tashera did with her brother. We did everything together when we (were) little. He got put in a foster home and I was (gonna be) next. But I made it out. I’m a 3.5 GPA student and I’m preparing to go to college to become a Registered Nurse. I enjoyed reading the book because it felt like i–the reader–was there. I will continue reading your books.

Your biggest fans,

Tamika

I appreciate Tamika for sharing this with me and letting me know of her journey. These are the letters that keep me motivated. Thank you Tamika!!! I’m sure you’ll make a great RN. Keep shooting for the stars!

Can She Be Saved? — as you have heard by now is my lil’ film that could–  screened at the Texas Black Film Festival in Dallas today. I was not in attendance as I was returning from a business trip in Atlanta but I was there in spirit. I hope the film touched many people’s lives.

Here’s the link to the festival: http://www.texasblackfilmfestival.com/

For those of you who have never attended a film festival, the point of a festival is to get industry and audience feedback on your project. Its important in the launch of a filmmaker’s career. Also, the more festivals that select your film, it validates your work as a filmmaker. So, every time I share that Can She Be Saved? was selected for a festival is such a tremendous blessing because it pushes me one step closer to doing my feature film, Retaliation. I’m claiming that each and every day.

And here’s the trailer to Can She Be Saved? Feel free to view it and rate it.

In the latest episode of Every Corner, a teen shares how her life was impacted by gang violence. I used a blackbox over the teen’s face to protect her and her family’s identity. After watching, please take a moment and rate the video.

According to recent research, Human Trafficking is the second largest criminal industry in the world. Who gets trafficked? And where does it happen. A couple of days ago I posted Lindsey Lohan’s new documentary which depicts child trafficking India. Women and girls get trafficked for sex all throughout the world. Boys and men get trafficked for labor throughout the world. People often look at it as  “Third World” country phenomenon, but the truth is trafficking is happening in every country throughout the world.

I applaud Eve Blossom for her recent post on Human trafficking. Here’s an except from her article:

But the main issue is how human trafficking has been escalating over recent years and is now the second largest criminal industry in the world. In some areas of the world, it is highly organized crime and others places, new crime rings are being structured now. The number of actual people (approx. 27,000,000 worldwide) is not known since many of these people do not report the crimes. Also, a lot of money is at stake. The money involved (estimated between 10 billion and possibly, up to 42 billion) is not really known. With illegal trade, it is hard to know exactly how much money changes hands.

To read her entire article click here.

If you’re wondering how human trafficking occurs in a place like the US. Think about all the children who go missing and who are never found. They didn’t just disappear. Many of the children who are kidnapped are believed to be sold into human trafficking…. So, lets be aware of what’s going on today. Here’s the clip again from Lindsay’s documentary.

As a parent, I hope I never have to address or experience any situation like this. I had been hearing that 80/90’s super producer Teddy Riley was in the news for allegedly attacking his two daughters. TMZ.com caught up with Teddy and asked him about what happened. He discloses it in the video below.

Watch the video before reading my comments.

1. If I have to tell a child of mine to leave my house and they won’t then I know I’ve missed something in the child’s formative years.  Something clearly was missing –like respect for the parents or honor thy mother and father–something to that effect.
2. If I collar you and put you outta my house AFTER I’ve politely asked you to leave and you come back to swing on me– then I know there is some real problem with you as my child.
3. If I physically collar you and throw you out and you come back and hit me in the face–a grown person who is your parent–then I know I have woefully dropped the ball in parenting you. Why on earth would Teddy’s daughter hit him in the face?
4. If my other child is watching nearby and instead of saying, “Hey let’s go,” says instead, “What are you doing to my sister?” and begins to attack me as well, I am writing both of them outta my will, calling the police, getting restraining orders and never seeing them again. There’s a line of things that children should not do to their parents. If Teddy’s account is true, Teddy’s daughters crossed the line.
5. People will say that Teddy should have left the house, but if it was his house, why should he have left?

I don’t know what happened in Teddy Riley’s household but attacking your parent? That is so uncalled for I can barely stomach it. If you can’t resolve an issue peacefully, step off. There needs to be no physical fights between parents and their children. SERIOUSLY. And may this be a wake up call to parents! Parent your children when they’re young so you don’t have to fight them off when you’re older. Invest time and respect into your kids and they will return it to you.

I understand some people’s need to be a rebel for the hell of it, but a 14 year old in Pittsburgh, PA who pulled out a gun and demanded a police officer to surrender their personal vehicle must take the cake. Of all the people to attempt to carjack? Is this a sign of the times or what? According to the reports, this teen and four others SERIOUSLY thought they could carjack this police officer. But as soon as she opened her car door, they ran. Uh, dumb. Then, she caught up with the 14 year old and back up police officers caught up with the rest.

According to the Associated Press,

The juveniles have been charged with robbery of a motor vehicle and criminal conspiracy. The 14-year-old boy has been charged with illegal possession of a firearm.

This is one of the reasons that carjacking is so stupid, you don’t know what you’re gonna get when you pull a gun and try to jack somebody. What if that person you decide to jack, has a gun and can aim better than you? You wouldn’t be counting on that would you? People, people, people. Let’s get it together. When we decide to act fearlessly, let’s leave stupidity out of it!

In perusing the internet, I came across the artwork for rapper, Gucci Mane’s upcoming album. It’s aptly titled “The State vs. Radric Davis.” Radric Davis, of course, being his government name. I dislike his artwork because it shows this artist in a prison jumpsuit, wearing handcuffs. I dislike this artwork because to a young person it sends the message that “I’m a cool artist and I’m on the cover of my rap album even though I’ve been to prison.”

I dislike the artwork because it AGAIN associates rappers with going to jail–an association I’ve been long tired of.

I dislike the artwork because some young person will think prison has become a rite of passage in becoming an artist. Am I by myself?

Gucci Mane's Album Cover

After looking at Gucci’s artwork, I decided to look up his legal history on line. From my research, I understand why he felt the need to do an album cover in a prison jumpsuit. Its a look he’s not unfamiliar with…. According to Wikipedia:

On May 10, 2005, Davis was attacked by a group of men who were trying to steal his trademark “So Icey” chain. Davis’ companions shot at the group, killing at least one. The corpse of one of the attackers, Henry Lee Clark III, was found at a middle school. Davis turned himself in to police investigators on May 19, 2005 and was subsequently charged with murder. Davis claimed that the shots fired by his party were in self-defense. The DeKalb County district attorney’s office dropped the murder charge in January 2006 due to insufficient evidence.

The previous October, in an unrelated matter, Davis had pleaded no contest to a charge of assault for assaulting a nightclub promoter the previous June; at the time the murder charge was dropped, he was serving a six-month prison sentence for this. Davis was released from prison in late January 2006.

In September 2008, Gucci Mane was arrested for parole violation for completing only 25 out of 600 community service hours following his 2005 arrest for assault. He was sentenced to a year in prison but was released after six months.

On November 12, 2009, Gucci Mane was sentenced to 12 months in prison for probation violation and taken away to prison in handcuffs.

So Gucci is in prison right now as his album is preparing to drop in 14 days. Right now, he’s “arguably” one of the hottest rappers guest starring on singles and he’s in prison. So like I said, I wish he didn’t have a record as in a prison record and maybe, just maybe, I wish he didn’t have an album either.

More people are going to focus on the fact that he’s in prison than the fact that he started writing poetry when he was 14. SMH.

Gucci. Gucci. Gucci. I hope that you get your life together after this stint in prison.

What do you think? Will his being in prison become more important than his music? Let me know your thoughts.

C. Breezy talks Rihanna and Domestic Violence tomorrow night, Friday, December 4 on 20/20 with Robin Roberts. Watch it and tell me what you think.