A mother in Oakland, California says that her twin daughters recently heard gunshots and had to rush to safety while they were watering their garden in the crime-ridden city.
Keisha Henderson recently made a post on X asking how parents explain the situation to their kids as the Bay Area continues to experience a rise in violent crime.
‘I don’t have the energy to break this BS down to my 8-year-olds tonight. I have ran out of stories to tell my twin daughters in a way that they would understand the crisis that oakland is in,’ Henderson, 31, wrote.
The mom – whose X bio states ‘you can’t play politics with public safety’ – genuinely asked if anyone has an answer to how to address this issue with kids.
‘How do any of you violence Interupters or Anti Police abolitionist explain this issue to your children ? I’ll wait. Sincerely, A mother raising her daughter’s in high crime impacted neighborhood in District 6,’ she continued.
Violence interruption is a community-based program to de-escalate conflict and provide mediation and without the use of police.
Keisha Henderson recently made a post on X asking how parents explain the situation to their kids as the Bay Area continues to experience a rise in violent crime
Henderson (pictured) is asking for the community’s help to address the situation with her kids
Henderson shared this picture of her twin daughters on X along with her story
In her post, Henderson shared that she was just getting home from grocery shopping when the shocking and terrifying incident happened.
‘The next thing we hear are rounds and rounds of gunshots. My daughter instantly froze and dropped the water hose,’ the mom to twin girls wrote.
‘She said, “Mom, that’s gunshots! I want to go inside. I’m scared,”‘ she continued.
Her scared daughter then reportedly pointed to the sky and said, ‘Look, the gunshots will fall out of the sky and hurt us.’
‘Twin #2 said “Mom, why do they keep shooting those gun shots?”‘ calling the situation ‘creepy’ and saying she ‘doesn’t understand.’
Henderson – unsure what to tell the 8-year-old girls – said she just told her daughters that they would have a conversation about the problem later.
‘I have ran out of stories to tell my twin daughters in a way that they would understand the crisis that oakland is in,’ she wrote.
She also added that her daughters ask specifically for ‘Chief Armstrong,’ the ex-chief of police for the City of Oakland.
Henderson ended her post by calling out for other parents to help decipher how she should handle addressing the issue with her daughters.
‘Are there any other parents in Oakland that live in high crime impacted neighborhood that struggle with explaining the crime issues in Oakland to your children?’ she asked.
‘Do anybody have any root cause stories or as would sat political theater stories that I can explain to my daughters? I will be waiting for it…..’ Henderson shared.
In the last part, the mom appears to be asking for stories that show how the city has been run into the ground in recent years by Democratic politicians who prioritize ‘woke’ policies over the safety of their citizens.
Henderson’s twin daughters in a photo she shared online
Henderson (pictured) – unsure what to tell the 8-year-old girls – said she just told her daughters that they would have a conversation about the problem later
Just last month, Oakland’s embattled Mayor Sheng Thao dodged questions about the city’s crime problem and a grant that would have helped the issue
‘Nobody should have to live like this. Shots fired into the sky can be lethal,’ one person wrote
In the comments, other parents and residents echoed the mother’s confusion and anger at the escalating situation in the Bay Area.
‘Nobody should have to live like this. Shots fired into the sky can be lethal.’
‘This is the social experiment we are being subjected to.’
‘I love your stance! Keep it up. Criminality cannot stand.’
‘I lived in The SF Bay Area most of my life. Oakland, Hayward, East Palo Alto. I raised my family in Santa Cruz / Capitola. Lived in Europe, the South and Las Vegas now for 17 years. Nothing could make me live in Oakland with small children.’
‘I won’t pretend to know what you are going through, but I am keeping you and your beautiful family in my thoughts. Keep writing these powerful words.’
‘Just more insanity every single day in Oakland.’
The Oakland area has seen a massive rise in crime in recent months with homicides up 37 percent compared with 2019 and robberies up by about 30 percent.
Aggravated assault is up 12 percent this year to date, while burglary is up 40 percent and motor vehicle theft is up 51 percent.
In July, the leaders of the NAACP’s Oakland branch called on local officials to declare a state of emergency over the ‘intolerable public safety crisis.’
The group said the crime is disproportionately impacting black residents.
In the letter they wrote, ‘Failed leadership, including the movement to defund the police, our District Attorney’s unwillingness to charge and prosecute people who murder and commit life threatening serious crimes, and the proliferation of anti-police rhetoric have created a heyday for Oakland criminals.’
Just last month, Oakland’s embattled Mayor Sheng Thao dodged questions about the city’s crime problem and a grant that would have helped the issue.
The city was required to submit the grant application by a strict deadline to obtain the $267 million in funding that could’ve gone towards crime solutions.
The situation left residents infuriated as they continue to deal with the ramifications of policies that have made them the guinea pigs in a ‘social experiment.’
Oakland cops have warned residents to take increased measures to protect themselves and their homes during this crime wave.
In a Facebook post the police department warned thieves have grown more brazen, even breaking into homes when the owners are there.
They advised reinforcing doors with a security bar, installing security systems with motion detection and even trimming hedges and shrubs so there are no potential hiding spots.
Around the same time as Thao’s interview, video emerged showing a woman who was violently mugged being two masked robbers who dragged her on the ground.
The daylight attack was caught on a resident’s security camera.
In the video, two robbers jumped out of a car parked on the side of the street to attack their female victim from behind.
The pair tried to grab the bags she was holding in each hand after she had left a nearby grocery store.
The woman began to scream as she struggled with the assailants before she was knocked to the ground. Eventually a man across the street ran over to intervene but the suspects drove off with the woman’s belongings.
Disturbing surveillance video shows the moment a woman was mugged and dragged down the street in Oakland, California
Businesses which have left, or plan to leave, San Francisco in recent months
California as a whole has been plagued by growing crime since the COVID pandemic with smash and grabs and armed robberies among the most prevalent issues.
The issue has become so bad that local and international businesses in the Bay Area have had to shutter their doors amid the chaos.
Over the past few months, dozens of retailers in San Francisco have announced they would be vacating the downtown area of the city.
Retail stalwart Old Navy announced they would be shuttering their flagship store in the area last month, becoming the latest chain to exit the city.
Nordstrom also announced they would be closing all of their locations in the city.
It occupied half of the former Westfield San Francisco Center. Westfield has since pulled out of managing the glitzy mall, which remains open, but which has become increasingly desolate – sparking fears it will be the next big name to shutter.
The company said that due to the ‘changing dynamics’ of San Francisco it would be shuttering all remaining stores in the next few months.
In April, Whole Foods announced it was closing all their locations, with Anthropologie and Office Depot having also made the same decisions.
These stores joined the growing list of stores that have abandoned the coastal city, including H&M, Marshall’s, Gap and Banana Republic.
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