Each day, we experience another death, another tragedy, another loss of life to violence, and we have no answers. There are many people–good peopleworking to help families and the community cope with the hurt and pain that comes with loss, particularly tragic loss.
As we at Scoop try to support our communities, victims, and families, we have partnered with Zarinah Lomax and The Apologues to respect those we have lost by sharing portraits and brief introductions into the lives of the families that The Apologues’ has featured.
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Artist: Vanessa Young Untitled, Mixed media
Co-victim: Latrice Victim: Alan Jamal Womack, Jr. Alan Jamal Womack Jr. was murdered, on February 28, 2020, after joining a pickup basketball game at LA Fitness in Upper Merion Township. A dispute on the basketball court resulted in Alan being shot once in the chest in the parking lot of the gym. Latrice and Alan were very close, and she has been on the frontlines demanding the violence in Philadelphia to stop although it continues to increase.
She is the co-victim reflected in the portrait in honor of her son’s remembrance.
Latrice says: I will never be the same, I no longer want to die, but it’s a struggle wanting to live.
What is The Apologues?
The Apologues (under the fiscal sponsorship of the Federation of Neighborhood Centers) is a fashion and art exhibit that uses the arts to assist individuals in healing, empowering themselves, and advocating against gun violence and trauma that plague urban communities. Through the use of fashion, art, and music, The Apologues honors the emotions of untreated trauma through the realm of storytelling to trigger healing. We do this through the combination of self-portraits of victims and co-victims, wearable art, and musical experiences combined.
For more information and to support this initiative, visit our website, https://www.theapologues.org
