Darryl Ware II: The state of the city
Shreveport is dying. The wails of widows are heard throughout the night. Children's torsos are pierced with stray projectiles. Brothers are retaliating to heal. Shreveport is dying.
I was born on July 26th, 1993. For 28 years, Shreveport's 1993 homicide count of 86 was the city's highest. Six months after I was born, my father was Shreveport's eighth homicide victim of 1994. No one was charged in connection with the shooting. As life goes on, I have and continue to lose loved ones and friends to gun violence. I have lost childhood friends and family from The Cooper Road, Ingleside, Hollywood, Allendale, Lakeside, Pines Road, Queensborough, Mooretown, Sunset, and Cedar Grove to gun violence.
On December 10th, 2018, while taking a final exam, I received a text message and call from my cousin that my beloved Uncle Perry Norwood had died as a result of a gunshot wound to the face. He was 60 years old. No arrests were made in connection to the shooting. My family was left without justice once again that early winter morning. I graduated from Cornell 5 months later. When a human being dies, a part of the family dies. The pain is a poison that can penetrate the soul for years. Everyone responds differently to murder. Everyone suffers. In 2021, the city experienced a record 91 homicides. We all suffered. Shreveport is dying.
On February 23rd, 2022, Shreveport, Louisiana was ranked the 25th deadliest city in the United States by CBS News. As the summer begins, Shreveport has witnessed nearly 40 homicides. Families are suffering. On July 4th, as I speak to you, the city has just witnessed another mass shooting on Jewella Ave. Our children are traumatized. Every corner is ripe with rolling gun battles. Every house is vulnerable to the assault of stray bullets. Every club parking lot is a battleground. Shreveport is dying.
Shreveport is no longer the home of General Motors, General Electric, or Libbey Glass. Shreveport is dying. Safe union jobs that create and support a strong middle class have left Shreveport. We lost our workers and our families as well. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of May 2022, Shreveport-Bossier Metropolitan has an average of 7,020 unemployed citizens for the year 2022. This does not account for the people who have left the labor force completely after giving up on the economy. Inflation is at an all-time high. At least 25.7% of the city is living in poverty according to the 2020 United States Census data. People are underpaid. Childcare is pricey. Our gas is taxing. Our groceries are expensive. Our malls are empty. We can not afford to leave anyone out of the local economy. Shreveport is dying.
A total of 1,310,829 people in Louisiana have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began as of July 5th, 2022 according to the Louisiana Department of Public Health. There have been a total of 17,418 COVID-19-related deaths. In Caddo Parish, there were a total of 71,640 COVID-19 cases and a total of 1,159 COVID-19 deaths. Region 7, which includes the Shreveport metropolitan area, has a vaccination rate of 45.04%. Shreveport is dying.
Urgent interventions are required in Caddo Parish K-12 schools according to the Louisiana Department of Education. Of our 54 K-12 institutions of learning, 15 received F's for their 2019 Letter Grade and 13 received D's for their 2019 Letter Grade. Only 22% of our Caddo Parish Schools received a score of Mastery and Above. Shreveport is dying.
The walls of Shreveport are coming down. Our buildings are crumbling, our neighborhoods are dilapidated, and our streets are fraught with potholes. According to the 2020 Shreveport Municipal Infrastructure Report, it will cost $455 million to replace the Raw Water and Supply Treatment, $359 million to replace the Finished Water Distribution, $185 million to replace the Wastewater Treatment, $2.67 billion to replace the Wastewater Collection and $153.6 million to replace the Stormwater System. For roadways, it will cost $1.9 billion to replace Concrete Roadways and $694 million to replace Asphalt Roadways. There are a total of 1,500 miles of concrete roadways and 1,200 miles of asphalt roadways within the city of Shreveport. Shreveport is dying.
Shreveport needs faith. Shreveport requires love. Shreveport wants better. Shreveport deserves a new leader. Shreveport deserves a leader who will stand up for them and not forsake them. Shreveport deserves a leader who listens and provides care to the city he is from. Shreveport deserves a leader who seeks wisdom and who is willing to pay the ultimate price to serve his people. Shreveport deserves a leader who wants to put an end to human suffering. I need your help. Allow me to be your warrior who takes on your toughest battles. Allow me to be your servant who acts on your behalf and no one else's. I want to bring this city back to life. Allow me to be the best political leader this city has ever seen and allow me to do it as the youngest mayor in Shreveport, Louisiana history.
Darryl R Ware II is the youngest mayoral candidate for the city of Shreveport. He is a graduate of Louisiana Tech and holds a Masters in Public Health with a concentration in Infectious Disease Epidemiology from Cornell University. Visit his website and social media pages to learn more.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Darryl Ware II: The state of the city
