It’s not worth it.
Taking the life of another individual is not worth the consequences of your action. It’s not worth spending the rest of your own life in jail, nor is it worth the moral dilemma you’re sure to face.
“It’s not worth it” is what I kept saying aloud when the body of Latasha Norman was discovered last week.
Norman was the 20-year-old Jackson State University student who went missing on Nov. 13. Last week, Norman’s ex-boyfriend led police to her body. He has now been charged with her murder.
When I initially heard Norman was missing, the news hurt me deeply for a multitude of reasons. Of course the primary reason was the possibility of Norman being in severe danger — or worse: dead. Another reason was for Norman’s family. Though I’ve been fortunate enough not to experience any such act in my own family, I understand the pain, uncertainty and fear an individual feels when a loved one is missing. Also, as a graduate of Jackson State University, I was also sad for the university. Much of what the news stations reported centered on the neighborhood surrounding JSU.
As with many Historically Black Colleges and Universities, JSU is located near an area that is poverty-stricken. However, make no mistake about it, the campus and other university facilities are very safe. I think that an instance like Norman’s could have occurred on any college campus, particularly one the size of, or larger than Jackson State.
Norman was a hard working student who maintained a 3.5 grade point average. As an accounting major, she worked at the campus’ newspaper as part of her work study as well as at a local craft shop. It’s upsetting to know that someone with so much talent and potential is gone because someone else decided to take matters into his own hands.
Stanley Cole, Norman’s 23-year-old ex-boyfriend was charged last October with hitting her. The quiet student reported the instance to campus police as she should have done. Unfortunately, that report wasn’t enough to keep Cole from her.
I often talk with teenagers and young adults trying to encourage them not to get too deeply involved with people of the opposite sex too soon because sometimes, particularly when we’re younger, things can have a tremendous impact on us and we aren’t quite sure how to handle our feelings and emotions. That’s why it’s especially important to grow and mature as individuals before we welcome someone extra into our lives and vice versa. Perhaps if Cole would have matured a bit more, he wouldn’t have made the foolish mistake of killing Norman. Now however, as the holidays near he can look forward to spending the rest of his life in jail, and Norman’s family is left mourning the loss of their loved one and wondering “what could have been.”
I can only pray that no other family has to experience the pain that Norman’s family and so many others are feeling. But the sad reality is, someone else will as domestic violence and other crimes of passion continue to increase in this country.
While Norman’s death is sad, it wasn’t in vain. I have a friend who pastors a church in Mississippi, not far from JSU’s campus. He informed me that the Sunday following the discovery of Norman’s death nearly a dozen college-aged women visited his church. That in itself is a blessing. What’s also a blessing is the guidance and prayer he shared with those young women and the rest of his congregation. He told them the importance of loving themselves, knowing right from wrong, and also making the best decisions for them. In addition, he talked about recognizing the signs.
People and I think women in particular have the innate ability to recognize when something is wrong and when something is right; it’s what we do with this gift that can sometimes be the difference between life and death.
I’ve spoken with countless victims of abuse and almost all of them said that there was some sort of sign that the abuser or God gave them that alerted them of potential danger. However, many ignored the sign.
In being true to ourselves, it’s important to always recognize the signs and act accordingly. Indeed, doing so can potentially save our lives.
