Each day, we experience another death, tragedy, or loss of life to violence, and we have no answers. Many people–good people–are working to help families and the community cope with the hurt and pain that comes with loss, particularly tragic loss.
As Scoop tries 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: Tanisha Serrano
Shattered, Acrylic on canvas
Co-victim: Haddiyah
Victim: Kevin Michael Davis, Jr.
“Not many people get argued into thinking differently, but experiences and stories move us, especially when we have the humility to listen and view the world from a different lens, from someone else’s eyes.” — Shane Claiborne
Michael Davis Jr. was murdered on Jan. 21, 2021, at age of 18. His body was found four days later. Kevin Davis was found shot twice in the back with just sweatpants on and left for dead in a vacant lot at Fairmount Avenue and 42nd Street. His mother, Haddiyah, and his siblings miss him every day. The trial is set for them soon, and they are very nervous as they do not want to relive his loss. Haddiyah and her two other children are the co-victims reflected in the portrait.
Haddiyah says: Losing Kevin feels like my heart has been ripped out of my chest, and I’m still alive and made to watch. It makes me so angry. It’s times I literally stay up at night waiting for my baby to come home; then I realize this is MY reality. I don’t wish this pain on anyone. Yet, I know that my reality is also the reality of so many other parents.
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
