Responsibility is a word that also means accountability. Unfortunately there have been recent instances when adults don’t act as responsibly as they should — particularly given their specific role in life.
Earlier this week an extensive search was conducted on the city’s Eastside after a mother alerted police that her eight-year-old daughter was missing . On Monday, the girl told her mother and stepfather that she was going to a neighbor’s house. After not returning home when expected, her mother phoned police.
Acting swiftly, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department launched a large search that included a door-to-door check of homes in the area. The girl was found Tuesday at a house approximately six blocks from her home.
Child Protective Services kept the minor after police officials found her home in “deplorable” conditions. An investigation found that this wasn’t the first instance CPS has had to intervene in regards to the child’s mother, as there have been at least four previous incidents.
There are a couple of things that I find disconcerting about this situation:
The child being unsupervised — The society we live in today is light years away from that of 20 years ago. Locally children have been beaten up, robbed at bus stops, and even kidnapped and raped. I know one has to give children responsibility, but to let an eight-year-old child walk throughout a neighborhood unsupervised is dangerous and irresponsible.
Uncertainty regarding child’s clothing — Local television news stations aired the 911 call the mother made. As I listened intently, I was surprised that the mother wasn’t completely sure what her child was wearing that day. One could clearly hear a male’s voice (presumably the stepfather) telling the mother what type of clothing the child had on. Parents have to be observant of their children. Even if the mother wasn’t home when the child was dressed, she did see the child before the minor ventured out of the house. It’s imperative that we pay attention to our children — all the time.
While IMPD did a wonderful job of accessing the situation and launching a thorough search, the same can’t be said about the child’s parents.
In general, it seems that many of today’s parents are raising their children in a very lackadaisical manner, leaving the children to “assume” the role of the parent. However, what many fail to realize is that it’s not the role of the child to be the enforcer — parents and guardians have to assume that responsibility. It’s very frustrating for me to see parents who expect a child to make an informed decision without providing that child with the necessary teachings to do so. When I’m out and about, I sometimes hear parents scolding their children and saying things like, “you should know better.” My question to that parent would be, Have you taught them better or do you just “expect” them to know?
We have to be more responsible parents to our children. For those of us who don’t have children, it’s essential that we’re responsible adults to any child.
The great thing about responsibility is that it’s something that we all can do. And whether we like it or not — we all should exhibit a level of responsibility at all times. This is especially true among celebrities.
Three weeks ago many were surprised to learn that entertainer Chris Brown allegedly beat his girlfriend, R&B singer Rihanna. What was even more surprising to many is that as of this week, the couple is supposedly back together again.
When news of the altercation hit, everyone sounded off. People were livid that Brown could do such a thing, others claim that the duo fought each other…regardless of what was said about the two, it’s safe to say they were easily the talk of the town.
While celebrities are certainly entitled to live their lives the way they choose, I do think that when you assume the role of a public figure, you have to understand the impact that your actions have on your fans — especially the young ones.
If Rihanna and Brown are back together, there are some young girls who now think it’s OK for a man to put his hands on a woman (for any reason). In a sense, Rihanna’s decision to reunite with Brown excuses his actions — that’s never a good thing and it sends the wrong message to young girls as well as other abuse victims (male and female).
It would be great if Rihanna could act in a more responsible way by being the strong and confident woman she portrays on stage and not bow down to domestic violence. Pe rhaps she should watch “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” and take a hint from Tina Turner’s experiences.
