Countdown to 30: Day 3

The press coverage following Guy's murder was something that I do not think I was prepared to deal with. On the one hand, I was glad that his murder was being covered because he was a name instead of a number, he had a family, and a community was grieving. On the other hand, it was difficult to read the inaccuracies in the stories, the wrong assumptions, and to see that the police were pursuing the wrong suspect. The continued coverage of his death seemed to make his murder mean something, but it also made it hard to deal with because the story seemed to be everywhere. Some of the facts in the story made it hard to read (such as his arrest for drugs) because although they were true, they made society view him as someone who had it coming to him instead of making society see that there were friends and family members who loved him and were in pain. The arrest of the initial suspect several weeks later meant that the story was in the newspapers again, even though the initial suspect was no longer a suspect in Guy's murder. Later that year came the TV specials on crime in New Orleans and the high school that he attended, and it was like picking at a scar until it bleeds again.

The news coverage following Guy's death has taught me some important lessons. First, do not believe everything that you read in a newspaper. I know that everyone knows that, but people need to be reminded of that when they read about murders and other crimes. Chances are the story is not 100% accurate, so do not convict someone of a crime in your head just because of what a newspaper story says about the crime. Second, even alleged criminals' families grieve when choices that the person makes leads to their death. One of the hardest things to hear was that the city was better off without someone like Guy on the streets. Even if society as a whole has a valid point, that does not bring comfort to the family and friends who miss the side that society did not see. I now read the newspaper stories with sympathy for the families and friends instead of just indifference towards the victim. Third, it is hard to grieve when there is media attention. I only experienced this on a small scale, and of course it was easier being in Texarkana where people did not hear about it unless I told them. I cannot imagine how hard it must be for families of the victims of 9/11 or even the killings that happened in Ft. Hood last week. I know that it was hard for me because I wanted to read and watch and see all of the media accounts, but it was painful to read and watch and see. I do not know if it is easier to deal with death privately, or if it is just the nature of Guy's death that has made everything so difficult. Finally, there are just some things that cannot be conveyed by the media. People may get a glimpse of what the family is going through, but they really have no idea.