“Two more white boys!” Franco said with some disdain. “You and whose army?”
“Jason’s army!” called out three more voices. It was Tim, Nick, and Jonathan. “You had better drop those weapons and start acting a lot more friendly,” Tim yelled out. For the first time, the four gang wannabes began to realize that they were in trouble themselves.
“Look at these guys,” Franco continued defiantly. “We could take them all with one hand tied behind our backs.”
“And while you are doing that we will beat the crap out of you with our baseball bats and enjoy every minute of it!” It was Chauncey and two of his other A-list team, Mariano and Kololo. Each of them was brandishing an aluminum baseball bat.
“You cholos had better put down those weapons and get out of here real fast,” Mariano said in a mean sounding voice. “Otherwise you will become gang chorizo. This school is our territory! You pendejos had better learn that real quick!”
Chauncey, Mariano, and Kololo then advanced up to where the four gang members were standing. As they moved in, so did Daniel and the others. Julio, Franco and the other were now out-numbered ten to four.
“What’s it going to be, gang-bangers?” Chauncey said in a demanding voice. “You have exactly one minute to lay down your weapons and run, and I do mean run, out of here. And once you run out of here, never come back! Losers like you don’t belong here. Or you can be fools and stay. In that case my batting average is going to go way up along with the bruises all over your gang-banger bodies!”
Chauncey, Mariano, and Kololo stood there taking practice swings with their bats, while Daniel, Eric, and Tim began pointing out places to take down Julio and his three companions.
Julio looked around at the situation he and his friends were facing. All of a sudden their chance for payback had turned into a nightmare. Instead of dishing out some pain and humiliation to Arthur, they now were about to become the victims of the same thing. He decided that the best thing to do right now was lose some face. Quickly he signaled for them to retreat, and they laid down their weapons and ran out of there.
As Julio and the other gang wannabes were running out of there, Kololo started a cheerleader chant he had heard at the basketball games: “Merriam, Merriam, Merriam High. We are the best team, my oh my!” The others picked up on it and the chant rang out over the playground while they watched Julio, Franco, Diego, and Carlos slink into their car and drive away.
After they were gone, Jason smiled his big smile at his friends and said, “Thanks, guys! It was awesome that you all showed up in the nick of time! Otherwise Arthur and I might have been nursing a few bumps and bruises.”
“I second that!” Arthur said with real relief in his voice. “How did you guys find out we were in trouble?”
“I think I started it when I texted Daniel asking him and Eric if they would like to join us for an hour of basketball,” Jason began.
“Yeah, just as Eric and I were arriving, we saw that you were in trouble so I contacted a few more friends so that we could change the odds,” Daniel replied.
“And thank you again Chauncey, Mariano, and Kololo for being the icing on the cake,” Jason continued. “You seriously kicked their behinds!”
“I can’t believe these loser gang wannabes actually had the nerve to come over here and start trouble,” Mariano said. “The real gang members know that Merriam High is not a good place to take care of their business and that it won’t be tolerated here. What were those fools thinking?”
“I think that the gang task force will be on them like a glove from now on,” Arthur answered. “Three incidents in three days is unacceptable! My father will be furious when he finds out.”
“Of all the people in town to try and recruit, why you, Arthur?” Daniel asked.
“I think those guys were set up, probably by their rival gang,” Arthur concluded. “You would think they would have figured it out by now!”
Chapter 19
Interview with Jason Hunter, Part 3
(Television Feature)
Jason Hunter and Jaime Orlando were standing in front of the Silicon Valley Community Center where Jason often played basketball with Chauncey and the other A-List guys. They were about to begin the last of the interviews about Jason’s work assisting other teenagers through his Whatever Foundation. Today they were working with an on-the-scene news crew.
JO: Welcome to In Depth, an interview show about people making the news in the Silicon Valley. This is my third and final interview with Jason Hunter, an amazing local teenager who has made a career out of helping other teens, especially those who have been crime victims. Jason asked us to have this part of the interview in front of the Silicon Valley Community Center because he had some points to make to other teens about how to stay safe and how to help each other out. Could you be more specific about what you mean when you say that?
JH: Sure. One of the most important things that every kid should have is some kind of safety net, a network of family and friends that they can rely on in case of trouble. Sometimes this is easier said than done, especially if the kid comes from a broken home, or has been abused in any way. Worst of all would be a situation where a teenager has been a victim of a crime, but feels helpless because there is no one to talk to about it or, more importantly, to do something about it.
JO: How can you outreach to someone like that?
JH: It can be very difficult at times because the normal reaction is to try and hide abuse from the outside world, usually because the victim is so ashamed of what has happened.
JO: If that is the case, then what can you do to break through that barrier of silence?
JH: This is where that whole safety net idea comes into play. A friend or family member would need to step in and help get the process started. In order to do that, they need to recognize the symptoms of child abuse.
JO: What about the kid who has absolutely no one to turn to? Maybe he or she is being abused by a family member, and has no close friends.
JH: In that case, the kid should go to someone at their school, a teacher, counselor, or administrator. They are trained to report the symptoms of child abuse, as are fire fighters and policemen. This is actually somewhat rare, that there is not one person in a kid’s life that they can turn to.
JO: Then what would you describe as a quote “normal” instance?
JH: It’s hard to describe any one particular case as “normal”. People are individuals and should be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. A “one size fits all” approach is not going to work. When I look at some of the cases that the Whatever Foundation has taken on, I realize that every one has had some sort of special circumstances.
JO: So how do young kids or their families or friends deal with this?
JH: I think that one key is good communication. This subject is something that every family should discuss some time. I really believe that this is the first step to understanding what is child abuse and what is considered normal discipline in a family situation.
JO: Right there maybe you are opening a can of worms. Some parents would say “spare the rod, spoil the child” while other might say the use of any physical force is abusive. Who is right and who is wrong?
JH: Jaime, I don’t even have a high school diploma yet, so I can’t claim to be any expert or authority on what constitutes a legal definition of these things. All I can speak from is my own personal experiences. I think every kid at one time or another wants to challenge the authority of his or her parents. They test the waters to see what they can get away with. Often that testing might consist of defiant behavior that needs to be dealt with right away. When I was a lot younger, I tried that with my parents. The result was a quick swat on the behind from my father. I was more embarrassed than hurt, and it made me cry at the time, but I learned that when my behavior was out of line, there were consequences.
Now, to me that was not child abuse, but a normal type of parental discipline. And my parents never needed to do that to
me again. Just the threat of it was enough to keep me in line, and in the long run I was glad to know what the boundaries of acceptable behavior are. They made a point of explaining to me how to behave with them and how to behave in public situations. The difference between that and what might be defined as child abuse would be a family situation where one or more parents are constantly hitting their children. If the parents intervene early in a child’s development and make it clear what is acceptable behavior, there should not be the need for constant physical punishment.
JO: How should kids deal with other types of abusive situations?
JH: Every human being should be treated with a basic type of respect. Anything that goes past that boundary whether it is expressed in the form of emotional or sexual abuse degrades that respect. This is the hardest thing for young kids to deal with, because it is so personal and humiliating. The key for kids who unfortunately become the victims of this type of behavior is to immediately reach out and report it.
JO: How does a kid deal with this if it is a parent or close relative who is the abuser?
JH: One of the most important roles that a parent has is to protect their children from any type of predatory behavior. Children, especially young children, have an innocence and naivety about the world that is easy for a predator to exploit. And once that innocence is taken away, their childhood is ruined. That’s why I hate predators so much, but the worst predator is a family member, because they have regular access to the kid and sometimes families will cover up incidents of abuse to save face in the public eye. But as painful as it may be, it must be reported if the abusive behavior is to be stopped. That’s where the kid’s personal network comes in.
JO: So your advice is to report the abuse no matter what the consequences may be?
JH: There is safety in numbers and there is safety in the light of day. Predatory behavior cannot exist out in the open!
JO: Jason, you requested that we have this interview in front of the Silicon Valley Community Center. Was there a particular reason for that?
JH: Certainly. I wanted to remind the viewers out there that being involved in community activities is an important defense against abuse. The more you are involved with people, the less chance you have to be stuck in an abusive situation. And the more people you know, the larger your safety net.
JO: Isn’t this something that you also advocate for the teenaged victims of crimes that you assist?
JH: Most definitely! That’s another reason why I wanted to meet here, to remind people of the healing power that activities in sports or the arts can have in someone’s life. Or for that matter we could meet in front of a concert hall or in an art studio.
JO: Jason, another issue is the degree of intervention in one of these abuse cases. You certainly have taken extreme measures in several of these recent cases that you were involved in. Is that something that everyone should consider doing?
JH: This sounds like it is going to turn into one of those “Don’t try this at home” messages! I would think that in most instances, using the network of friends or family would be the way to go. When you are a victim of a crime, you are one person against a more powerful adult or even group of adults if the crime was organized. You very seldom could ever win against those odds. That’s why I strongly advise anyone who has been victimized to immediately reach out to their network. Listen to their advice, which I would assume in most cases would be to contact the proper authorities. Then you will have a team of players on your side, and people with the power to do something about your situation. Now the odds are more in your favor!
JO: So you don’t advocate immediately fighting back against a criminal or an abuser?
JH: No, any type of retaliation or investigation takes time and some legal standing. That’s what the police or other authorities are mandated to do. Let them lead the way.
JO: But you have stepped in very quickly on your own in some of your cases. How can you justify that given what you just said.
JH: The difference is this question: Is the person you are trying to help in immediate physical danger? If I see someone drowning, or trapped in a life-threatening situation, or for that matter, since you brought up my specific cases, being held prisoner against their will, and I can provide assistance, I believe it is my obligation to help that person if I can. In all other situations, if I can identify a criminal who needs to be captured, then I would call in the police who have the power to arrest and confine this criminal for legal proceedings.
JO: So what you are advocating is being a good neighbor. Help someone in need if you have the opportunity. But use the proper authorities to go against an abuser or a criminal if there is no imminent danger.
JH: Yes. Like I said before there is safety in numbers and exposing any crime to the light of day. You know what you are capable of doing; don’t try to go beyond your capabilities.
JO: Sage advice, Jason. Thank you again for agreeing to appear on In Depth. This is Jaime Orlando for Channel 11 news.
Chapter 20
A Musical Setback
(Monday)
It had now been a week since Scott Brewster had moved into the Kowalski house. Although Madeline had promised that his being there would bring better times to their family, so far the only good thing Jonathan could see was that there was a little bit more food in the house. And mostly this food was in the form of take out from fast food restaurants. Jonathan’s dream of having quality home made food around the house again was not yet a reality.
In some ways, Jonathan now felt like he was a stranger in his own home. Practicing his musical instruments was annoying to Scott. He could no longer practice early in the morning which had been his regular habit because it would wake Scott up. Scott and his mother would often be up until very late at night and then would sleep fitfully until late in the morning.
Jonathan was now trying to spend more time away from home because every time he saw Scott with his mother it made him angry. The problem was that he couldn’t spend all of his time elsewhere. Jonathan still had a lot of self-pride and even though her every move lately seemed to be along a road to self-destruction, he still felt an obligation to stick around and watch out for his mother. His best friend Tim wanted to help him out, but Tim had a girl friend and other commitments to deal with, so he couldn’t always be there for Jonathan. He didn’t want to push things with Tim because he was still concerned that Daniel and the other band members would find out that his situation at home was getting even getting worse. As much as he appreciated their concern, he still was very sensitive about discussing his current family scene with others.
This particular Monday, the weather had been warming up. Jonathan had decided that he needed to spend more time outdoors. His plan for this morning was to take a nice long bike ride to a park, relax and have a little snack for a while at the park, and return back home before the heat of the day became too intense. By then his mother and Scott should be awake, allowing him to practice his musical instruments so that he would be ready for tomorrow’s band rehearsal at Tim’s studio.
Jonathan woke up early, put on a pair of cutoff Levi shorts, a tee shirt, and his favorite well-worn pair of white high top chucks. He went into the kitchen and looked around for some food he could pack along. There was a half sandwich left over from the weekend, a banana, and a few potato chips. He filled his water bottle with cool water from the pitcher kept inside the refrigerator, wrapped up the food in a bag and placed it inside a small backpack.
Conditions outside were perfect for his bike ride. The temperature was still in the lower seventies, there was a light breeze, and it was sunny and clear. Jonathan had a very enjoyable morning. Once he was at the park, he locked up his bike and decided to go on a short hike. After hiking, he relaxed at a picnic area and ate his food. It was now after 11:00 and it was starting to heat up outside. Jonathan got on his bike and made the hour long ride back home.
When he arrived at his house, he was surprised to find that no one was
home. Usually his mother and Scott would just be getting up around this time but today they were already up and gone somewhere. This is great, Jonathan thought to himself. Now I can practice at full volume and not worry about Scott complaining.
Jonathan drank a glass of water and relaxed in the kitchen for a few minutes. Then he got up and went to his room. As soon as he went into his room he could tell that something was very wrong. His music stand had been moved and so had the table where he normally kept his musical instruments. He had an extra large saxophone case that also had room for his flute and clarinet. But the saxophone case was missing!
Panicked, Jonathan searched all through his room to see if the case had been moved. It wasn’t anywhere. Then he went into his mother’s bedroom to see if it was in there. Again nothing. Jonathan continued to run through the house looking but gradually the reality of the situation began to sink in. Scott or his mother must have taken his instruments! The most important things in his life were now gone, most likely sitting on the shelf of a pawn shop.
Eyewitness News Page 14
