Indianapolis youth learn responsible downtown behavior before big weekend

INDIANAPOLIS — Rev. Malachi Walker brought 50 of his Young Men Inc. summer campers downtown for a lesson in responsible youth behavior days before one of the biggest summer celebrations in the heart of Indianapolis.

”We have had a rash of violence that’s been taking place down here where a lot of it had to pertain to our children,” said Walker as he gathered his campers at the intersection of Illinois and Washington streets below the Arts Garden. This was where a 15-year-old boy was shot to death following downtown Fourth of July fireworks.

Indianapolis will be swarmed with crowds of young people attending not only the WNBA All-Star festivities but also the Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration.

For several weekends going back to early June, young adults and unsupervised teenagers have been wounded by gunfire during early morning hours. This led officials with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department to announce that they will enforce the city’s curfew ordinances.

Walker issued what he called a “3-Point Empowerment Challenge” to his youngsters and families throughout the community:

“Words have power: use them to uplift, not destroy.”

“What enters your mind and home shapes your legacy,” said Walker, warning against negative social media and music influences.

“Unity is our strongest defense against destruction.”

This is a message that Walker’s campers have heard time and again this summer in the basement of a northside church. Apparently, the lessons are getting through.

”He said don’t come downtown without a parent,” said Masen Perkins, 15. ”Its scary because you coming down here without your parent and you get a call that their kid or their daughter or their son just passed away, you don’t know what they’re going through.”

”This summer I’ve learned about gun violence, mostly gun violence, and I’ve learned about leadership more leadership this year encouraging kids lifting up my peers helping them through what they need help through,” said Michael Shields, 13. ”I don’t wanna come down here and have to fear my life every turn because somebody wants to carry a gun and somebody wants to shoot somebody like us kids because we got on their nerves or we did something to them to make them mad.”.

Jared Hubbard is a graduate of Young Men Inc. and now works as a fitness trainer.

”I see myself as the little boys in the front, the ones that are so reactive and fidgety and the ones that are angry whether their dads are home or their parents are together or parents are on drugs or underprivileged and I just see my mom figuring how to raise two twin boys.

”I  think most importantly the parents should always know where their children are. I think also its very important that the children don’t become so just reactive to what’s going on. There’s gonna be distractions, there’s gonna be bad people, there’s gonna be just bad things going on and commotion, but don’t be so quick to be reactive and get so out of control and get out of yourself.

“Some may be underprivileged, some may be underparented, some may not have any kind of accountability.”

With the guidance of Walker and his mentors, youngsters like Shields learn to be responsible for their own behavior.

”We need to stay off these streets, we need to obey our parents, if we do come down here, at least be with a responsible adult like my mom or anybody else. If we don’t do that and Pastor Malachi finds out, I could get demoted or we gonna hear a mouthful from Pastor Malachi.”