Jabari Parker has been through it all. He grew up on the tough streets of Chicago, and he knows what violence looks like. Parker recently wrote an article for The Players Tribune, speaking on gun violence in his hometown and calling for a stop. He has a plan to stop the violence, and it starts with education.
Jabari Parker wrote the following on The Player’s Tribune:
“Black Lives Matter and police brutality are issues that are important to me. But I also need to speak up for my city. Chicago’s kids need to know that their education matters, that their lives matter because every day they are more and more at risk of being victims of gun violence.
“Education is what’s going to give these kids a future. It doesn’t have to come from new books or new buildings. We can deal without those. I’ve seen it. We can use those books until the pages fall out — I did it. But when you close schools and force kids into different neighborhoods, when you cut programs that keep them off of the streets, where are they going to go to escape? Where are they going to find something productive to do after school gets out at 3 p.m., in the hours when juvenile crime is at its highest?”
Parker, who is entering his 3rd season with the Milwaukee Bucks, has been active in the Milwaukee community since he was drafted two years ago. Now, he is making a stand in his hometown of Chicago. He already puts on a summer camp there, and now he wants the street violence to end. Violence is a major problem in this country, and he believes that education is the answer.
