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?uestlove on Donte Johnson
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?uestlove on Donte Johnson
Filed Under: Music
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| photo from CBS3.com |
| Donte Johnson |
some of you people are turning that sabina link i sent earlier into something super ugly. my timeline and fund raising efforts obviously state that i am out for justice in her senseless murder. BUT. i cannot look into this boy's eyes http://twitpic.com/1xageo and be all dismissive like "this fucking monster" as im sure most of us (specially those of us who knew sabina and were regulars at PYT) will react. and i understand the passion behind it. make no mistake, i understand the passion behind it. this is NOT me being irresponsible nor an apologist in the matter. but you HAVE to understand it from my shoes: i too at one point was an 18 year old black man from philadelphia. the 2 west philly neighborhoods i grew up in (to my knowledge) — with the exception of my next door neighbor and my best bud down the street — all the lives have been claimed in my age range. like seriously. if there were a reunion of all the kids in my age range from born from 1971-1976 that i grew up playing ball with and summer day camp and breakdancing and trading pac-man game patterns with, out of the combined 24 of us? (3 cousins included) only 3 are STILL LIVING or NOT in jail for a long time. im like — "wait you mean to tell me if you stood us ALL in a line with the hand of death lurking behind us and told us 'im only going to spare 3 of you'...." then im to believe that me? ahmir thompson is one of them? swear to god i think about that everyday of my "how did i get here?!" life. im sorry. you can take the hard road if you want. but you HAVE to admit it: 18 is a baby! when i was 18? i was thinking about how am i gonna juggle playing with my pop on the weekend and working at UPS in nyc if im able to attend school. when i was 18? i discovered prince bootlegs which profoundly effected the manner and direction i too would create music. when i was 18? pals finally broke through to the other side and made me realize that Led Zeppelin wasn't the satanic induced rock-backwards-masking-messages in their music that my church would lead my parents to believe. their Physical Graffiti was the soundtrack to that banner year of music. when i was 18? like 20 hip hop classics came out that year and i was collecting em all...shaped my LIFE!!!! that was my 18!!!! but on some real ish?...waking up at 6am to boil a pot of water on electric cooker so i could bathe was also my 18. watching half of the extras we loved on the cosby show and 6 or 7 of my classmates changing the face of music (boyz II men are STILL in the recordbooks, christian mcbride has the 10 best fingers to touch a bass since charles mingus) all before they graduated and my backstage pop giving me that "you giving all this up for THAT?" looks was my 18 (in his world, me playing for boyz II men & following chris to julliard was better than "running round with that hoodlum tariq) — — pssh walking to the corner store in the late pre gentrified drug corner 80s was damn near a survival roulette game for my band geek ass. i didn't have a big brother or a crew that would eff you up if you messed with me. i WAS the character in will smith's "parents just dont understand" that had to find a way to make thrift clothes look somewhat cool to fit in. all of that was my 18. there seems to be some misconception that just because i had a two parent household and you heard stories of me playing at radio city music hall with my pops as a kid — -man....that don't hardly make a rose colored garden. no matter how loud your "cry me a effing river ?ueslove" disposition you take as you read these words. my 18 was a battle of survival living one day to the next. you really think i knew the future that lay ahead of me as i was stealing my mom's soup pot and washing buckets to beat for a few hours for a few 10s and 1s on south street on saturdays would bring me to where i am now? look. i am NOT trying to be on some capn save a thug ish. but dude. http://twitpic.com/1xageo look at him. he is a fucking BABY. the hell he see in his 18 years that brought him to THIS?!?!?!?! yes. when i first heard the news of sabina's murder. i too was praying (as most black people do when they hear news of this caliber "lord god please let this be a white 40 years old predator/psychopath drunk that was a patron of that place and not someone that looks like me cause i can't take another "see! they ARE animals!" under the breath generalization..............................again. especially when the neighborhood was JUST getting over a similar murder just shy of a year ago!! (i too knew Rian Thal) this IS my neighborhood! i moved there to GET AWAY from the 3 things (robbery, rape, murder) committed a mere 138 second walk from my house! (yes i drove there 5am and tested the distance) so of course i had vested interest in finding justice served. i know many a single woman on my block. my mom and sister visit often and have to park away from my house occasionally. just as all the women in that neighborhood internalized sabina's murder as "that could have been me or any of us!!!" i internalized donte. im sorry....http://twitpic.com/1xageo could have been me or any of us. this is why i said it breaks my heart. i want to know the specific conditions that drove this boy (yes i am using boy specifically) to this ugly act. i watched the tape. didn't look like a drug addict to me the way he coordinated himself on the bike. i didn't get a disheveled homeless drunken vibe either. — - don't mind me yall. maybe this is my way of mourning this situation — -writing about it — - my heart goes out Sabina's family. i pray they get closure and eventual peace of mind as they mourn her loss. my heart is also going out to all the donte johnson's waking up this morning in detroit. and nawlins. and pittsburgh. and vegas. and oakland and seattle. and jacksonville. all the 18 year olds with a REAL future ahead of them. my heart is even going out to all newborns born in this year 2010 ad that will be 18 in 2028. i pray that whatever obstacle is placed in their path, they may it never ever ever lead them to a place so desperate and dark and lost as this http://twitpic.com/1xageo
I was talking with my dad about how messed up it is that this kid is going to perpetuate that racial fear that already exists. I agree the circumstances that make him a monster need to be investigated. All that being said, ?uest is obviously a good man, and it wasn't simply fate that kept him from being Donte Johnson. No circumstances ever excuse murder, especially in such a vicious and pointless way. Donte is a monster, and I'm not sure anybody will ever know why.
Sorry. 18 is NOT a baby. it's old enough to go to college and to war. All the praying in the won't change this guy or any others. Praying is a pointless exercise.
as you consider "18 is a baby," the victim was 21 and arguably still very young, "a baby," by your argument. guess what: the "baby" you are writing about still violently assaulted someone, brutally murdering her, and he gets to "grow up." she doesn't. so fuck you.
if he's out for justice in the matter, like he says repeatedly that he is, then why not just be glad we can now look forward to justice being served? why stir the pot with all this rambling, humanizing "he's a baby" talk? for what reason? what is it he is trying to infer? this filthy monster, yes monster - "boys" don't brutally murder their peers - shouldn't get any semblance of pity for what he's done. this rant was extremely insensitive.
i too thought questlove was such a rad dude. then i read this today and got so pissed off. WTF??!
I don't think your 'article' about ?uestlove's feelings, regarding the response to Donte Johnson's arrest, is conducive to anything news worthy. I think you're better off expressing YOUR feelings or finding of facts. That means putting YOU on the line, so that when someone Googles Donte Johnson YOUR name shows up in bold, capped letters. If you would have simply referenced ?uesto's words, with a paraphrase and/or maybe a link to the Twitlonger site, that would have been [somewhat] respectable. Instead you've taken someone's semi-private [considering you must be allowed to follow someone on Twitter] words of emotional 'processing' and made it gossip fodder.
In closing, I would suggest sticking to the basics of journalism: who, what, when, where, why and how. Also when you use the word "they," it's helpful if you indicate who "they" are in a piece.Folks, you've entirely missed the point. He doesn't offer absolution or even pretend to. He's saying that this kid is 18 and he's killed and raped a woman, ruining an untold number of lives, his own included. He's asking what it could possibly be that drove an 18 year old to these depths, caused him to throw away his future and kill this woman. Those are valid questions, and worth exploring. If he's guilty, he'll spend the rest of his life in prison, and even that won't last long. Rapists don't do well in prison, because even guys who've killed a dozen people frown on that sort of thing, for whatever messed up perception of honor they possess.
You obviously don't get the point he's trying to make! He is not neglecting the tragedy itself, but moreso trying to shed light on the problem in most urban cities. Wayward youth who get into trouble because of hard circumstances. In no way is donte not deserving of punishment, but at 18 you DO wonder..how could he ever come to this point?
Jesus, people. ?uestlove isn't defending this freaking murderer—he's explaining that, just as Sabina's brutal murder hit incredibly close to home to so many young people in the city (whether they knew her or not), the fact that this 18-year-old kid was fucked-up enough to destroy the life of another human being hits close to home to anyone who has escaped hood lifestyle. Before everyone jumps down my throat, I'm not defending this monster either. But I understand where ?uestlove is coming from—it's survivor guilt, he says so himself. You can't help but feel like "There but for the grace of God...". Ahmir Thompson made the choice to play music, just as Donte made the choice to take someone's life—but seeing too many superficial similarities can unnerve someone. ?uestlove is voicing that. Sabina's death is being met with an outpouring of community support and togetherness. But Mr. Johnson's actions are just going to make him another statistic, thanks to how he grew up. The impact he's made on his neighborhood and his circle, the fact that yet another young black kid willfully threw everything away, willfully destroyed two lives, has the same horrible impact as the absence of a beautiful, bright, and loving young girl—but maybe if his impact was more examined instead of ignored and put in the "he was just a monster" pile, the cycle wouldn't repeat itself. I do disagree with ?uestlove on the main point: eighteen is not "a baby". This kid made a choice, and deserves the full consequences of his actions. Eighteen is, however, too damn freaking young to have so little regard for life you commit a crime as heinous this. It seems to me that ?uestlove is externalizing the feeling of "We're working on how to stop other kids from ending up like poor Sabina, but how the hell can we stop other kids from becoming Donte Johnson?"
but whatever the point he was trying to make, or personal emotions he was trying to express, it comes at a time when the community is still very much reeling from this murder and on the day that this killer was captured and when everyone just wants to be angry at the whole situation, and rightfully so. i mean quest had to have known this would not have been accepted with open minds when he wrote this.
Rape and Murder are heinous crimes. I don't care if he was 18 or 81. When I was 18 I was working and going to school. Murdering and raping someone was the furthest thing from my mind. I have a hard time understanding the mindset of kids like this and why ?uestlove only has 2 out of 24 friends alive or not in prison. Who's responsible for this? Are parenting skills and role models this poor within this community? Why is this the case with African Americans? Why shouldn't I be prejudice? Being open minded and trusting led Sabina Rose to her death. The kid says he only wanted to steal her bike. You mean he had to pry her vagina off the seat with his penis?? Donte can fry.
I agree with "saddened" most of the comments are off from what the author was trying to say. I too looked at the picture and I am like d@mn... What would cause this kid looking man to do this despicable act. As the father of two daughters I would like to him to suffer all that is meant for him. But I too ask what happened in his life for him to not only rob but rape and murder this vivacious young lady or any other human being. This situation is so sad from all perspectives.
I agree. 18 years old is still a baby. But, He was lost at a younger age and there is alot more like him around. White or black.
all im hearing is ?uestlove crying about his "ruff life" you had a home many others dont even have that. lets not make this about race but i see with people like ?uestlove its all about race. you were hoping a white man did this...great. i dont care black white asian purple orange this kid is a monster and if you really wanna know what caused it im sure his mother had him young and didnt show him no love.
Come on ?uestlove. I love your music and all, but this rant is just outrageous. You make it sound like "oh, this could have been any of us, this could have happened to anyone". It's not like the adult male slipped on ice and fell. He stalked her. He raped her. He beat her to the ground. And then, to top it off, he strangled her to death. Do you know how non-accidental strangulation is? It takes effort, and anger, and hate. This man should be put out of his misery.
i really shouldnt be surprised by i am ?uestlove we all have good and evil in us doing the right thing is harder then doing the wrong thing dont make this a cop out cause the dude was black and may have had a ruff up bringing i was homeless at 13 and in youthstudy center by 16 for not having a mother or father to take care of me yet i never murdered or assulted or robbed anyone why cause i didnt give in to evil.
in regards to what "white man" said, he also just recently said he was glad that Hanson was playing at that NYC concert with Drake where a riot broke out so it wouldnt be spun as a "rap concert riot" by the media....um which is totally was.
You wish he was a white 40 year old man? Drunk? Praying he was not African American? Why would you want to pray for those things? How about pray that the MONSTER gets caught before he finds another young woman? People that screwed up deserve a slow agonizing painful death..BLACK OR WHITE!
um, questo can cry me a river. I understand his need for questioning what could have made a boy of 18 do this -- they are very valid questions, but the melancholy sob story? PLEASE. Does he think that because he's black and lived in the hood he's had it SO much worse than all of us -- some of us who aren't from white families (i.e. immigrant, ethnic families with limited means) managed to make something of ourselves too...and i havent killed anyone. so, please. cry me a river. that boy is sociopath and a murderer. A picture of him can't tell us this. Questo: next time you have these little brainfarts, just remind yourself: YOURE A MUSICIAN, not a social worker...And yet another reason why famous people shouldnt put their every random musing on twitter. why do we look up to celebrities?
As browngirl says, ?uestlove is a musician not a social worker. Well... as a social worker in Philadelphia's Family Court, I work with rapists, murderers, child molesters, and the like every day. And they're all under the age of 18. What ?uestlove is trying to put a spotlight on is that so many young men in this city and around the country have been destroyed by their environment, which causes further destruction all around them, even in Northern Liberties (God forbid). Many of those accused of violent crimes have an intense history of being beaten, raped and otherwise tortured themselves from the moment they entered this world. It is absolutely horrible what happened to this young woman. But I bet if you look into Donte Johnson's case file, you will find many other horrible things that no one ever paid attention to. Or maybe you won't. Maybe he is just a sociopath and psycho-killer as many of you are saying... Yes, the community is still reeling from this tragedy. But we are also part of a global community in which these issues must be addressed NOW. Not later. We can't wait for everyone to grieve to speak our minds because this is going to happen to another human being next month, next week, probably before I'm done writing this post. ?uestlove is speaking to an issue that is far greater than Philadelphia. And with more people thinking about it, speaking out about it, and taking steps to make a change -- senseless tragedies like what happened to Ms. O'Donnell can be avoided in the future.
I know that even at 5 years old I knew killing was wrong...so at 18 if someone can be that brutal they are just a bad seed and deserve to die (be tortured.) I think that growing up in the hood may be part...but if you look at the block he was from, he lived in those nice ass rebuilt houses...so how rough could he have had it? Just an evil piece of shit, probably since birth. I'm not concerned with why he did it, just that he pays. Why consider his feelings? I just hope he gets raped 1000 more times than his victim in prison.
may God be with Sabina, her family and friends. this is a tragedy all the way around. and while i prayed tirelessly that they would find the person responsible and am SO GLAD that they did, i too feel sadness as i learn about the suspect...i too feel that 18 is a baby. it doesn't dismiss his horrible actions, it just adds to the tragedy. im a white female who lives in Sabina's neighborhood and once i learned about the suspect i tried to imagine what his life was like...to lead him to this point. violence is a cycle. that statement is NOT an excuse, but a reason. maybe this objectivity comes from being so removed. i didn't know Sabina. perhaps, if i did i would feel nothing but complete and utter anger. i once heard a great quote..."when you stay angry at someone...you chain yourself to them." i wish peace for Sabina's family.
Please take me off the list of black people who prayed that the killer was white so I could feel better about the whole thing. Thank you.
"he is a fucking BABY." - I disagree, ?uest. 18 is old enough to vote, serve in the military, pay taxes, ie: have access to privileges and responsibilities of an "adult" in our society. Your pitied Donte, an 18 year old MAN viciously raped & robbed a 20-year old WOMAN of her life via strangulating her with her own bra. Your deeming of him as a baby dimisses the crimes he has committed and undermines the suffering of Sabina Rose O'Donnell, her family, friends and the community that has been turned upside down at this murdering thug's hands. So kindly fuck off...
?uestlove's essay was an expressive and excruciatingly honest response to this tragedy. Thank god for it. There is no excusing Johnson's actions. Period. But there is a responsibility to try to understand them, and prevent them from happening in the future. Calling someone a "monster" is a simple way of making us sleep better at night. "He's different than us," we'd like to say. "He's inhuman." But look at that picture. That is a young man. A boy even. What ?uestlove saw in that picture was that humanity. This is a boy, not a monster. You might see him on your block. This does not, and can never, excuse what he did. But what's happened to our city if a boy of 18 is driven to this?
I'm with you Hank. I have NO pity whatsoever for this kid. Abused or not he is a human being with a brain that knows that killing another human is wrong. His respect for life was obviously less than the worth of a bike. Therefore, he is now where his sociopathic brain belongs--out of circulation with society. His "baby" brain had already punched a school teacher, threatened harm to other teachers, been caught with 42 bags of crack and been on a "most wanted" list for months. I knew Sabina. I live in the Piazza and saw her daily working outside at PYT and hanging with the guys at Fresh Melt. She was nothing but nice and a total sweetheart. This land shark little fuck will rot in prison. I don't believe in forgiving acts like this. Eye for an eye. You want to change the patterns of this demographic? Too late. They are already ruined by their teen years. I have seen how infants, toddlers and children are treated in this culture I work in health care and have worked at inner city hospitals...Working at St. Christopher's children's hospital I have seen the abuse and neglect firsthand. I have seen how infants, toddlers and young children are treated in this culture. I have seen the babies dipped in scalding water that need skin grafts. I took care of them. I skin grafted their faces when the boyfriends throw coffee on them when they don't stop crying. They are screamed at, slapped, treated like dogs from the time their brains are developing. I don't think it's possible to reverse the damage that is done by this horrific parenting. You can see the dead, blank look in their eyes from a very young age. You want to make a change? Correct the parenting. Don't believe me? Think I'm an asshole? Go spend an evening at ANY ER waiting room that takes care of children then tell me I'm wrong.
I think we were all looking to see evil when the perp was found, a despicable lowlife to rain vengeance down upon. Then we are confronted with this dumb, impulsive kid with a penchant for violence is the one who took a life. Ruins his family and totally destroys Sabina's family. We want to take it out on a monster, a hannibal lecter deserving of being torn limb from limb. Instead we see this stupid kid who had the burden of centuries of cultural diffidence and succumbs to his selfish inner demons. If this same kid, had been privileged and a white lacrosse player at some hoighty-toighthy school, he'd be in the news for the same thing, a senseless murder. Oh wait, that also is in the news. Some dumb, white douchebag, self-centered, entitled kid taking it out on someone else. So before we blame this on society, or cultural differences, on the past, know that there are many young black men who are not entitled enough to take a life and many young white men too. Each murder that happens is certainly unique, but the murderer is usually not a very generous, compassionate, caring individual. This and other murders (that are not gang related) are not tribes of people out to get each other, these are individuals who aren't in control of themselves and people who are selfish, entitled and lack compassion. We all need to confront that kind of behavior in our children and nip it in the bud by demonstrating compassion and generosity to them and insisting they follow our examples. Then we'd only need to worry about the true psychotic murderers out there.
Two years ago I was riding my bike home from work on 4th street and just as I crossed over Girard was knocked off my bike, sexually assaulted, and punched by a black kid who looked about 17 on a bike as well. I no longer live in Philadelphia, but this story has affected me so profoundly... I'm so saddened by this girl's death, and I'm relieved the alleged killer was caught, but also pissed off I have to be so embarrassed about my hometown. It's not even like "this could happen to you..." It DOES happen to US, all the time. Someone fucking do something so Philadelphia can be inhabitable again!
brown girl knows of what she speaks.
yeah i guess it's wrong for anyone to expect that any real truth or heart felt perspective would be accepted by any closed minded fucking racists. cyn and saddedend: thank you, right on. peace and love to all the families, friends and people affected by this horrible and senseless crime.
Joran van der Sloot was 17 when he (very probably) killed Natalee Holloway and 21 when he killed Stephany Flores. This dude had a very privileged life and yet turned out to be a psychotic. It's not like Donte accidentally shot someone in a botched robbery attempt. This was a brutal, sadistic murder that goes beyond upbringing, race and class. Let's not confuse a "baby face" with a baby. I don't think anyone is calling Van der Sloot "just a baby" and yet his crimes seem pretty comparable.
Sorry, I just read David's post. He said more eloquently what I was trying to express.
im sorry i meant "the social worker" and the ER dr know exactly what they are writing about.
Race. Age. Religion. Sex. ECT! That is no excuse for this horrific barbaric crime. Don't try and relate to this story ?uestlove because you have cousins, friends whatever that have died.... were you raped and murdered? No! So trying to play down this crime is sickening. 18 is old enough to know that rape and murder is Wrong so save your stupidass opinion to yourself. You're wrong and if you truly believe what you just said You Are a DISGUSTING HUMAN BEING! I Never will support you or the Roots again!
Will an editor at City Paper please remove the post from Anonymous on June 16th, 2010 at 7:35 pm? This "discussion" could use some monitoring.
I am a white woman who can understand where ? is coming from. He is basically saying in a nutshell that this kid is someone's family and it could have been anyone. I get all of that. What I don't get is even though he thought it, why he would admit that he was hoping that it would be a white man that committed this crime. Im sure Sabina's family didn't give a $hit what color he was. Furthermore, let a white man say that he wished it was a black man who committed this crime and the black organizations would be on his a$$ so fast. it's bc of people like ? who make comments like this that racism exists today. Everything else was on point but that was adumb comment to make about color.
Yeah, someone please remove this bullsh*t from the discussion. Racist & uncalled for.
Uhh... He *is* different from us - and ?uestlove and anyone else that hasn't raped and murdered. Let's not forget that MOST people who are born, raised and die in the ghetto aren't murderers and rapists. This sorry excuse for a MAN (not boy, MAN) truly is a statistical exception - a murdering, raping, dehumanizing thug who picked out a random victim & preyed on her accordingly.
Racist comment removed. Sorry it took so long for me to notice. —Pat Rapa
As someone who has known Sabina for two years, believe me when I say that many of us spent the past two weeks waiting to string up this monster like a human pinata in the middle of the Piazza, and let everyone take a swing at him. Two weeks ago, I wondered if the murderer was someone who had been evading police for years, and hoped that in the process of capturing him the police could bring resolution to many other families. To see this case solved in just two weeks has been a massive (yet still Sabina-less) relief, which is something many friends and families of murder victims never get to feel. Many crimes go unsolved and we all had to be prepared for that on some level. It was clear once the surveillance video came out that it was a young kid, so I was already braced for this exact discussion/debate/discourse and wearily prepared to read a bunch of shit about race/class/stereotypes. Oy. So let's not talk about any of those three things for just a minute. This is a case of two failed young lives. A beautiful, wonderful girl was ripped away from us by a broken, fucked up individual. I believe ?uesto's point is that this is a two-part tragedy and in these times we MUST ask ourselves why and how a society can produce such monsters. Let there be no mistake, I think the Donte Johnsons and the Van der Sloots of the world are cut from the same cloth -- but how can we discontinue this hideous pattern? If I could personally cut off their penises and pour hot lava on them, I would. But I want to understand the monster machine. After the vengeance stops coursing through all of us, I think we all on some level want to know why, how. As someone who is almost 30 I can say that they were BOTH babies. A lot of folks on here came in with some great insights, some from way too close to home, and I hope we can all start thinking a lot more about preventing this atrocities. RIP sweet Sabina
i really appreciate the complexity of ?'s comments including the really painful (I thought) admission that he hoped the criminal wasn't black. That's complicated, not simple -- not stupid or dumb, just a really really painful and courageous admission of one of the effects of living under the thumb of this country's crazy race shit. At least that's how I took it. I know Sabina and her family -- and the rage and grief and despair - the bottomless senseless meaningless of it all the impossibility of anything like justice -- are completely and totally overwhelming. But i think this must be used as a moment to think as widely and as broadly and as critically and openly as we can about everything surrounding this horrible event, including who Donte Johnson is, what his story has been and will be. So thank you, ?.
Fuck that noise. You know what Questo? I'm a liberal dude, and I believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt. I'll let you blame his 43 bags of crack, his assault of a school police officer, and even his trying to steal Sabina's bike on "the system". But to rape and murder a defenseless woman for.... NOTHING? That's pure fucking evil, and there is no excuse for that. So spare us your misguided sympathy. You lost a fan today. And as someone else so eloquently put it, go fuck yourself.
I don't understand his comments at all. I'm tired of this poverty bullshit. He did this cuz he didnt have much nonsense. Stop making excuses for monsters. Money doesn't buy morals quest, and my money won't buy anymore roots cd's after reading this garbage.
what
Sabina was the baby of my family. The youngest O'Donnell. She was going to turn 21 on the 30th of this month. There were so many of us planning to fly from all over the country to celebrate with her. It would be the first family reunion in 17 years. Well, we got our reunion alright, but 2 weeks early, without Sabina and filled with grief and rage. We are not a wealthy family either. Far from it. We know the pain of poverty very well. Like you, many of my friends did not survive to be adults and I am surprise each day that I am still alive. But you don't see me out killing people over it and I don't see you doing that either. Maybe you can identify with him, but the difference is, you aren't killing people. I don't see this as a racial thing, people of all races are fucked up and people from all races are beutiful and I can see that he is just a child himself, but looks can be deceptive. There is a monster behind those young eyes. I don't wig the death penalty upon that monster. No, that is far too easy a way out for him. I want him to spend the next 80 years as a prison bitch.
Where does this crack cocaine biz come from?
Questlove couldn't have been any clearer, but some people are just never going to relate to what he is saying. I was having a discussion with male coworkers this morning about "What happens to you in your life or in your mind that allows someone to decide to commit such horrific acts towards others." He is 18years old... without any regard for human life ... What happened to him?
Oh, and his story about wanting her bike? Bullshit. Complete fucking bullshit. You don't attempt a robbery an end up raping and murdering someone with her own bra. No. Fuck this lying sack of shit monster. He can rot forever. I hope he lives extra long so he can suffer that much longer. He deserves it and death is the easy way out.
Look, it comes down to the fact that- no matter WHAT he went through growing up- he is only EIGHTEEN and RAPED AND MURDERED a 21 year old girl. I don't care if your dad was Hitler and made you live in the basement living off bugs. It doesn't make me sympathize. I went through HELL growing up. I have no reason to describe my life, but lets just say I went through things that would emotionally traumatize people. Yet I am not a rapist. I am not a violent criminal. I'm 20 and the worst I've done is smoked mary jane to get over those past emotions/traumatic experiences. This girl was 21. This kid was so sex hungry or angry or lustful- WHATEVER- that he felt the need to RAPE and then STRANGLE this girl. Also I'd like to point something out- the whole mentality of "See, they ARE animals!" [that type of thing- i don't mean that in itself is the mentality I mean to describe..] seems to be more prominent in the older generation. That does NOT mean that I believe older people are racist or anything like that, but I do see that older folks (black, white, mexican, asian- whatever) have a lot more racial issues than the younger generations, as we were much less effected by all the race movements/bigotry that went on in the past. I'm actually happy about that, since that gives hope that eventually there will be NO racism/bigotry, except in a few places. (since not everyone is mentally sane...) This just made me mad. I do get hes saying "what made him do this" but the way he is saying it comes across as "poor little guy, hes only 18 and he already raped and killed someone!" Just because you go through horrible situations does NOT make you a horrible person, or more likely to do horrible things. Everyone control's their own actions, unless they have a mental problem. And the "40 year old white..." comment sort of bothered me. I mean he could have said "I hoped he wouldn't be some young black kid, because it promotes a negative image of the young black community." I mean white people have a bunch of stereotypes too. If I tell anyone I'm a white guy from Georgia (and they don't KNOW me) they assume I'm some hick or racist asshole or that my family must be into incest. And when you picture a pedophile, what image goes through your head? Probably some creepy, greasy white guy. Just sayin. Every race has negative stereotypes/portrayals, not just African Americans. Sorry if this is a bit heated. I don't care who did it- I can't stand waste of life, and who knows what this girl could have done, had she been allowed to grow up.
This 18 year old baby has been targeting women for years. This baby connected to a few robberies in the area. This baby stole a woman's car along Girard Ave. and proceeded to run the woman over last Summer. This baby is involved in some selling of coke as well. On the night of this vicious crime, this baby was on a bike stalking. This baby knew what he was doing. Tried to catch up with a woman and failed and later biked down the street, saw Sabina, followed her. This baby dragged her in back of her apartment, beat her, stripped her clothes off and raped her and strangled her. This baby left her naked body there and proceeded to try to break into the apartment building where she lived. This baby hid for 3 weeks. Not a baby. When you have this history and when the police know who you are because of them. When you commit a crime like this you are a monster. The ones babies cry about at night. I look into the eyes of the victim and I see a 20 year old just starting out in life. It's gone. The mother of this woman lost her baby. This monster needs the death penalty...
And I have to add, The Roots lost a really hardcore fan today. I'm sure they'll lose more because of this. Poverty doesn't FORCE anyone to commit crimes, and the fact that you were hoping it would be a white guy is a bit disturbing. And, I'm sorry, but RAPE and MURDER? If it were robbery, okay. He's young and desperately needs money, so he turns to crime. But whats the excuse here? That he was young and incredibly horny, so he felt the need to rape and murder some poor girl? NO. That does not SLIGHTLY make this heinous crime any better! And what, if it were a 40 year old white man it would have been better? ARE YOU SHITTING ME???? Its people with that type of mindset that help racism and crap CONTINUE. When I see a criminal involved in something like this, race NEVER goes through my mind. I see a monster. I see someone who deserves to be raped and beaten to death. I see someone who destroyed the life of this poor young girl, as well as the lives of those close to her. Killers and rapists might as well be their own "race," because they're all the same to me. I don't care where you grew up, I don't care what you went through, and I don't care what color you are. If everyone was so accepting, the Nazis would still be in power somewhere, because everyone would say "well germany was facing HORRIBLE economic standings, and the slums were getting worse and worse, so its REASONABLE that they'd..." what, decide to blame a whole religious group, along with priests, gypses, and others, for their problems? Previous experiences don't make things better. GOD I'M PISSED OFF. Good night.
Um... He IS different. He raped and killed a woman. Obviously he either thought this was OK, or that he could get away with it, which made him feel that it was OK. Where there is a HUMAN, there is HUMANity. It doesn't mean people aren't different. And yes, hes a boy. An average looking boy who very well COULD be seen on my block. But I hope to god someone like this is nowhere NEAR my block. He raped and killed a woman. RAPED AND KILLED. I highly doubt you'd be as understanding if this was your little girl. And people keep going back to "what drove him to do this????" Um... Hes fucking psychotic? I mean, if someone robs another person, feel free to ask the question. But he RAPED HER, and KILLED HER. What makes a person do this? Lust. Passion. Psychosis. What do you want as an answer? "Oh, well you see, he hadn't had sex in a whole year, so out of desperation, he decided to rape this beautiful young girl. Then, because he was terrified of being caught, he decided to KILL her." Theres your fucking answer. Did that make it better? Didn't think so. You know, I've been through shit. I was poor up until I managed to get myself into college. Well, actually I'm still poor, but I don't feel as poor. And want to know something horrible? I was raped when I was younger. Yeah, raped. The most traumatic experience I've ever had to go through. Since then I've fought depression, anxiety, and the whole incident seemed to temporarily shift my mind into a bi-polar state (anyone who tries to say this is a stupid thing to say, go look into it. Its something that can happen in this scenario, associated with post-traumatic stress.) Yet look at me. I have a job, I'm in college- I'm a productive member of society. On top of that, I'm a son, and an older brother to four siblings- and a good role model. I'm a fiance to a wonderful girl, and an ex-boyfriend to quite a few girls who still talk to me and say I was the best boyfriend they've had. I did not, however, rape and kill a poor girl. Nor, when I was poor, did I steal from people. Yeah, when I was six, I stole a pack of gum every now and then, but that was cause I was a dumb little kid. What you experience in life does NOT define you as a person. How you react to those experiences, and how you LET them change you, is what defines you. I have no sympathy for this guy. Honestly, I wouldn't mind if he was sentenced to death, though I'll be content if he ends up on the bad end of a prison relationship for the rest of his life. Maybe he'll get to experience the HELL he put that girl through. Sorry for anger, but think about it- the last minutes of this poor girl's life were spent being viciously raped. That is the last thing she was allowed to experience, because of this creep. I don't care what color he is, or what his age is. He's a monster.
Alright, you say "the cycle wouldn't repeat itself." Well here's the thing. Rapists and murderers come in all shapes, colors, sizes, and classes. There are rich people, poor people, middle class people, teachers, doctors, psychiatrists, construction workers, baby sitters, mothers, fathers, children- there have been rapists and murderers from all these types of people. A big problem I have with this is that JUST because he is a poor "hood" kid, does NOT mean that THAT is what drove him to do this. I think a lot of people feel this way, but they aren't vocalizing it properly. IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT ENVIRONMENT YOU'RE IN! You can still choose to be a monster, or to be a normal person. Obviously something was wrong with him. Or maybe he just got away with stuff, or felt that crime was paying off, so he took it a step further. Or maybe he got a rush off doing crap like that. Who knows? But you CAN NOT blame this on where the conditions he grew up in, as there are PLENTY of people who grew up in the SAME EXACT CONDITIONS, who would never DREAM of committing the crimes he has. There are also people who have been MUCH more fortunate, who HAVE committed the same crimes. To say that someone who grew up in his shoes has more reason to rape and murder than someone who grew up in a penthouse is ridiculous. And this isn't just some "crime" he committed. This is an incredibly heinous act. How does raping and killing improve his living conditions? What, he can stop having blue balls? He can sate his lust or hunger for death and destruction? Nothing justifies this, or even slightly rationalizes his decisions. You go Questlove. At this rate, you'll lose the majority of your fan base, not to mention a large amount of respect.
Its called "researching the subject," so that he could give a more educated opinion. Look into it and you'll find that this monster has a criminal record, and that this wasn't just some random psychotic break or a crime of passion. to Jakethesnake- I agree with you. Theft and such can be attributed to his poverty and environment. Rape and murder in NO way benefited him, besides thrills and getting off.
Hope this kid enjoys cock-meat sandwiches..
@Hank, it was in the CBS3 news report on their website. @Tina, just curious, where are you getting all that info from?
take me off the list too.and im white,42,and from kentucky yet i dont sit around playing banjo and screaming "squeal like a pig" like the movie deliverance but apparently it should be better if i did this rather than a kid from the hood....none of this makes any sense
Questlove? We both are Muslims. Let me give you a little dose of reality-if this had happened in Yemen or Saudi Arabia or any country that practices the Sharia law, they would just this little motherf-er's dick off-which they should do to all rapists and child molesters in this country. Maybe sex crimes would be a lot rarer if that was the law in this land. Where is you sympathy for this young sis who was raped?
I feel like I gotta say that people who doubt ?uestlove's compassion for Sabina are just way off. He was a regular at PYT. He knew her. He helped raise money for her funeral and the reward expenses to catch her killer. He spoke from the heart about it (see http://www.spin.com/gallery/6-best-moments-roots-picnic?page=3 ). He said he wants justice. (Also... Saudi Arabia? Notorious for punishing rape victims. Lashings, imprisonment, etc.)
Racism is not courageous. This essay is part of the crazy race shit, not some noble rebellion against it. I understand the questioning. I get that people who murder and rape sometimes have been badly victimized themselves. Being black in and of itself is not being a victim. All anyone really knows is that Donte Johnson is black, young, and apparently has a previous criminal record. Projecting that he is a victim based on that is bullshit. And, while I won't speculate on his home life, severely abusive parenting has been shown to be connected to extreme sociopathic behavior in a pattern that is not race-specific or exclusive to a certain economic status. It's just as likely that the hypothetical 40 year old white rapist-murderer would have had a tragic upbringing, but no one'd be boo-hooing for him.
Agreed. Poor timing. ?uest: Save your sociological musings for a later date and go Fuck Yourself. Growing up in the ghetto does not give you a license to be a scumbag. This kind of thinking demeans all those that do grow up in a horrible environment, and manage to maintain dignity and humanity. This perpetrator has no dignity because he is an animal. And he is not a "boy", he is a man. Fuck off.
Is this the Citypaper or the RuralAlabamapaper? The point that ?uestlove is making is one that I would think an urban audience would be able to get. My 56 year old white woman boss said pretty much they same thing that ?uestlove is saying. When I look into this young man's eyes I see a double tragedy that has greater implications about our city. Some of you people really need to take off the rose-colored glasses and stop with the "he's a monster" crap. It is deeper than that. RIP Sabina.
spot on
?uestlove WHAT THE F&%$#? "i cannot look into this boy's eyes and be all dismissive like "this fucking monster" WHO CAN look into the eyes of any rapiest and murderers. Boom ?uest he just raped one of your family members. Is he still a monster? "i too at one point was an 18 year old black man from philadelphia." What does race and location have anything to do with killing and raping? That's like me relating to the uni-bomber. I too, am a white man from farmland montana. "waking up at 6am to boil a pot of water on electric cooker so i could bathe was also my 18." So you were poor? It's ok to rape and murder when you're poor? Ohh ramen noodles, let's go do some raping. "but dude. look at him. he is a fucking BABY." Really? you just lost a long time fan for showing any remorse ANY remorse over a killer and murderer because he is black and poor. This is really the most ignorant city I have ever been in. Police are out of shape, 911 never shows up, litter and gum everywhere, and clearly IGNORANCE as you can see by ?uests remarks.
HE was praying he'd be white because he KNEW he'd be black. That's what's interesting. Then when he found out he was black somehow there was more too it. If he had been white, he woulda just been like "crazy craka."
I wonder how He would have felt if this were his sister.. or mother..?
Questlove somehow managed not to rape and strangle to death any 20-year old girls when he was a youth, so him and Donte are a lot less alike than he claims. It could not have been "any of us", because only a true monster is capable of such horrific things. Donte Johnson deserves no more and no less mercy than he showed Sabina. If this were his mother or sister strangled to death and brutally raped, I have a feeling Questlove would not be so quick to identify and "internalize".
Thank you for this post ?uestlove. The perspective is important and despite all the drivel being posted in response, any thinking person that reads it and reflects on it will be better for it.
NAHHHH..... this isn't fu--in Afghanistan or Rwanda in the 90s. This crime is some prehistoric animalistic sh-t. This boy's life is a product of social injustice but his actions are farrrrrR more vicious than the cards he was dealt. Like you said he is 18... he obviously has no responsibilities or terrible hardshipped bestowed upon him if he were carelessly cruising around at 2 in the morning looking for bikes. His life doesn't suck. He's just f-ed in the head. Our youths are placed in terrible circumstances and we need to change that. But even if we did, we'll always have some rotten ones among us. Johnson is one of the few examples.
agreed.
i miss her...and he stole her from this world. yes, granted 18, a baby, but also old enough to make conscious decisions. you beat-rape-jerk off on her- and then continue to enter the house after? thats a fucking demon, not a person.
Second (third?) the call for moderation. This is a courageous post and it's very insightful. If others can't rise to ?uestlove's level, they should be asked to leave the conversation.
but you HAVE to understand it from my shoes: -No. We do not have to understand it from YOUR shoes. Despite what you may like to believe your perspective is no more important then any other citizen. Regardless of the similarities you may or may not share with the killer (race, religion, up bringing) The only perspectives that matter in this situation are that of The victim, the families of the victim, and the sociopath that committed the crime. im sorry. you can take the hard road if you want. but you HAVE to admit it: 18 is a baby! -We as a society have "admitted" that 18 is in FACT an adult. If in 18 years on this earth you have not developed the ability to behave like an adult or a human being AT LEAST you will held accountable. We are not talking about a youthful mistake shoplifting, a fistfight, etc we are talking about the RAPE and MURDER of an innocent human being. yes. when i first heard the news of sabina's murder. i too was praying (as most black people do when they hear news of this caliber "lord god please let this be a white 40 years old predator/psychopath drunk that was a patron of that place and not someone that looks like me -This statement is disgusting to say the least and sums up this entire rant. Would you have taken the time out of your day to write this article on how tragic this event was if it was in fact a 40 year old white man? When you first heard the news of Sabina's murder your thoughts were not praying for the soul of an innocent girl raped and murdered, or the for the family, or for the immediate capture of a dangerous rapist/murderer in your area... NO... Like you said your first thoughts were hoping it was someone not like you. Regardless of what you would like to believe (and what I now find hard to believe) is we are all equal human beings. Regardless of what you may like to believe the 40 year old white man, the 18 year old black man, the 21 year old innocent girl, and even YOU questlove are all HUMAN BEINGS. To say that you would feel better if someone you did not connect with commited this brutal act towards a human life is disgusting. Yes when I see the man's photo I see a "monster" a disgrace of a human being... just as all the women in that neighborhood internalized sabina's murder as "that could have been me or any of us!!!" i internalized donte could have been me of any of us. - Yes the woman in the area can internalize with Sabina murder because it could in fact be "any of them". The capabilities of being a victim are as simple being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Donte on the other hand was capable of stalking an innocent girl, beating her with his fist, raping her, and strangling her to death with her bra... NO. You are wrong that could not have been ANY OF US. FUCK YOU
I work for an anti-violence agency that works specifically with female victims of gender-based violence. I also live in Northern Liberties, about 5 blocks from where Sabina was killed. My heart goes out to her family, but my heart also goes out to Donte's. My reaction to the arrest and unfolding details of this story was strikingly similar to ?uest's -- that this is not just a tragedy, but a failure. We, as a society, failed this boy. Just as we as a society failed to create a culture, a world, a neighborhood where Sabina could bike home safely. If we are serious about ending violence against women, then we have to acknowledge that doling out harsher sentences for offenders is not the end-all be-all panacea that the police department and local media make it out to be. What good does it do for Sabina? We need to focus on prevention. And while it's easier to dismiss Donte as "just another monster," it ignores the central issue, which is that monsters are not born. They are created. Prevention is key. And prevention comes in the form of increased social support, resources, access to legitimate forms of power, quality education, mentors, community investment, etc. I feel awful about Sabina's death. Just as I feel awful about all of the women who come into my agency everyday. But it doesn't take away from the fact that violence is SOCIAL problem. It's a hard pill to swallow, but until we accept a level of responsibility for crimes like this, we'll continue to see these tragedies unfold before our eyes.
To me it's pretty simple. Whoever rapes and murders an innocent woman who was just trying to go home should be put in jail or worse. No remorse, no identifying, no sympathy. That person made their choice. Now they have to pay regardless of race, age, or upbringing. Shame on you ?uestlove for defending this boy.
this is one of the outcomes of having children that you cannot afford to raise properly. stop having babies if you can't raise them, take care of them, hold them accountable to common decency and morals. all these fuckin ghetto ass hoes and bitch ass lame dudes who walk around all day swinging their dicks and talking shit need to stop having babies! and no, i am not saying, don't have babies if you are poor. im saying, don't have babies if you're poor and a fucking, ignorant ass who can't read, write or hold a decent conversation.
He stalked, raped and strangled her. That is a monster regardless of the color. I don't have pity for his fate and nor do I want to hear from people who will try to explain away his actions. Although I do understand some of Questlove's points, I am not sure why he felt the need to insert himself from this kids perspective. Maybe if we all start calling these events for what they are and show that we as a community regarless of race will not tolerate these criminals any more, then maybe things will get better. Right now, I don't understand how explaining the socialogy behind these things will help. Why does the truth hurt? He is a monster. If you soften your stance these crimes will continue to pervade.
Well, take it or leave it, you do have to wonder how an 18 year-old youth gets to the point where he is capable and willing to do a crime of this nature. What were the influences? The triggers? This is something to be looked at critically especially with the way things are going in Philadelphia right now. Aside from your straight up mental cases, there are plenty of other societal factors at play, working together to breed criminals. The Inquirer article on this murder out today gives a little insight - kid lives in a Philadelphia Housing Authority complex, dropped out of school as a sophomore, and is already no stranger to the law... Again, no excuse, but something to consider because this kind of violence needs to end.
I think it's a necessary perspective, adn it was well written. I don't believe people are "evil." I'm glad somebody wrote this. As a white man in his 20s, I was also disappointed that the suspect was a young black man, just because of the racist backlash. I'm sad about all of this. I miss Sabina. She was endlessly sweet, and died an ugly and early death for no real reason. I think we all need to hear more about why this happened. Personally, I don't buy the bike-theft-gone-wrong story. I want to know this kid's story. I do not forgive Donte. I just think that this has to be some reflection of our city, and I do appreciate this article. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you. Violent sociopathy is not simply a White Male of Privilege disease. Kids have it rough in Philly, no doubt, but this kid didn't accidentally kill someone while trying to steal bread to feed his family. He was trolling for trouble and found it. He chose to see fellow humans as potential marks. We know nothing about him and presuming some sob story of an upbringing is stereotyping at minimum.
this "kid" should rot in prison or go straight to hell for what he did to sabina. With that said,this should be a wake up call of all these young kids out here who think it's okay to have sex and make babies when they have no education, money, role models, family support or plans for the future. go get an abortion or clean up your motherlovin act before having kids. I work with young black children in southwest philadelphia and have worked with children for the past 11 years all over the city. there are some serious parenting issues amongst this city's poor. at 5-6 years old too many of the children have that "war trauma dead look" in their eyes. it is despicable, a disgrace and a crisis. unhealthy diet, verbal abuse, physical abuse, lack of encouragement and direction, and parents treating their children like accessories and toys instead of tender bodies and minds that need nuturing into adulthood. Parenting is a fucking joke in many of these situations. The lack thereof astounds me everyday. Some of the kids have more goddamn sense then their parents. Poverty is an excuse! It makes life harder, but it is no excuse for the viciousness that is inacted upon black children by criminal adults in the black community. Questlove's point of view would be better served addressed to the CRIMINALS that control and wreck havoc on our improvished neighborhoods, young children and families. I would like to suggest that all the black "celebrities" that have shit to say about this sort of incident, participate in taking back black communities from the thugs and drug dealers who run them instead of moving to "NL" to get away from it and then tweeting comments when shit like this happens. We could use your voice down here in the trenches instead of from your ivory tower. If that doesn't fit into your lifestyle, perhaps you should shut the fu** up! RIP Sabina
AMEN to that star.. oh and we are paying for them to NOT care for their kids too in the form of welfare and food stamps.. ever see the amount of bums (no, not homeless people) but actual deadbeats (people who dont do shit or pay taxes) just hanging out in the streets during the day around here.. its insane
you are an ass Ray Murphy
Thanks for this. Obviously, you still have access to your soul and can find room for empathy -- unlike some of the other people on this board. I'm sad for them, too.
I've been debating a response to this article for as long as it has been up. The first thing I said when I saw his photo was, "My god. He's a baby." This kid is younger than me, even if only by a few years. But so was Sabina. Women all over the city have been saying, "That could have been me," regarding her death...but isn't that taking away from what she suffered? It didn't happen to any of us. It happened to her. It happened to her family. Yes, let's take this lesson to be safer, but it's not about us. And ?uestlove, what he did is not about you OR how you grew up. It's not about race or a neighborhood, it's about someone who savagely killed an innocent human being for absolutely no reason. These crimes are not unique to the black community (specifically, the poor black community as ?uest mentioned), it happens in every community...mental illness usually being the contributing factor. I find this article just as offensive as I have found the comments on other websites coming from the other end. This just perpetuates the hate. How about we stop focusing on what race they are or neighborhood they came from and start finding ways to stop this from happening? For the love of god, let this sweet girl rest...PEACEFULLY.
?uestlove's view, to me, is very humane. He doesn't say that this person shouldn't be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. He just takes a moment to remember that even someone who could commit such a heinous crime is still a human being who has a history and family. I think it makes sense to take pause at the fact that a person so young would do something so horrific and disgusting, and to wonder what would propel him to act that way. As a 32-year-old woman who used to live a few blocks from where this happened, even I looked at his young face and thought, damn, why? It doesn't take anything away from mourning Sabina. It doesn't mean the guy shouldn't be in jail forever. It just means that nothing happens in a vacuum.
"We, as a society, failed this boy. Just as we as a society failed to create a culture, a world, a neighborhood where Sabina could bike home safely." -Debasri Ghosh..Agreed! I can't understand why Donte did what he did but I can understand ?uestlove's stance. Those of you who can't or think ?uestlove's essay is "disgusting" are maybe lucky enough not to have had someone in your life go down the wrong path. I grew up in the 'burbs and have seen several friends, friends of friends and little brothers and sisters wind up on drugs or committing crimes. That kind of sh** makes you wonder: we all grew up in the same neighborhood, same school etc.- so why am I here writing this while others are 6 feet under from an overdose or behind bars? My point is: How does anyone get to that point in their life? We have failed these individuals like Donte. I'm sure Donte has a childhood friend/family member out there wondering, "How am I here and Donte's there?" And THAT's what I think ?uestlove was trying to say. That certainly doesn't make him "disgusting" it makes him human. Thank you, ?uest!
Questlove you are a dipshit.
Yo for real!.. Quest you need to shut that mouth of yours. MAD DECENT RESPECT
Yo.. we all die. Its part of life. Stop acting like this is some shit that doesnt happen EVERY MIN OF THE DAY
That's not the stupidest thing I've ever read in response to a rape and murder, but ?uestlove's little essay is up there. If the man is looking for the specific conditions that drove this "boy" to randomly rape, severely beat, and murder a beautiful young woman, he won't find it in the part of the city that Donte Johnson came from. The external environmental factors that might have caused Donte Johnson to rape and murder a STRANGER transcend race and class. There's obviously a correlation between poverty, rape, and other kinds of violent crime, but the individual who attacks, rapes, and murders a stranger is rare on a per capita basis. Just because this type of crime frequently makes headlines doesn't mean it's common. That's the single good thing about this case: it isn't common. I wonder if there's a crime that Dante Johnson could have committed that wouldn't make ?uestlove look into his eyes, see a little puppy dog, and pontificate about the plight of the black man in America?
Well, Questlove has lost yet another fan. Too much siding with the piece of trash. But the reason he says these things especially about hoping that the killer would be white is because deep down he knows that the black community has been struggling with demons like Donte for a long time. As another poster said, they need to educate their children more instead of neglecting them and sometimes worse even abusing them. Sorry if that sounds racist or whatever, but I come from the ghetto of another country and none of my friends are rapists, killers, or drug dealers. I can draw a few observations from this case. The people of NoLibs acted really quickly to come together and gather what seemed to be abundant video footage of the scumbag from every possible angle and get it to the police. This needs to be a lesson to hoodrats everywhere, don't do the crime around that area or you'll be caught on tape. I knew that once the footage was released it would be a matter of days before they would catch him. Everything from his bike to his posture would be easy to recognize on the street, even with the blurriness of the shot. He was a real coward too, targeting women in his crimes. Also, this may turn out to be a groundbreaking case for Philly where the residents of neighborhoods like NoLibs will start identifying their thugs and giving them up to the cops. The cops need to not let go of these bastards once they got them. I personally hope he gets a death sentence. I think what makes this case so unique is that a lot of us know someone like Sabina. An enthusiastic and pretty young girl in an up and coming artistic neighborhood who may not have wanted to save the world but brought joy to other people's lives just by being there. It is sad and hits close to home when someone like that dies so horribly. And that the last thing she saw was that a-hole Donte. I hope that the empty in which she died gets transformed into a garden. I would personally donate some plants to that. I don't think that anything truly dies, the energy just gets transformed into something else. She may be the Neda of this city. (Neda was a girl killed by the religious police in Iran during the election protests.)
"The most dangerous creation of any society is the man who has nothing to lose." May we all remember Sabina. May we all remember Donte. May we all remember how oppressive, gentrification is. May we all remember how TWO families have been ripped apart. May we all remember, how violent poverty, terrible schools, and a lack of guidance can be. Thank you for your post ?uestlove. I encourage you all to
I think ?uestlove's comments would make more sense if this were an armed robbery or drug deal gone wrong. If someone is poor and desperate, truly desperate for money, and they have no idea how to get it legally, we can understand their perspective. We can see how a quest for cash might end in someone getting killed. (NOTE: this type of crime is STILL not excusable, but a perpetrator's lifelong poverty, lack of opportunities, etc. would help to explain their side of the story). But here we have a crime far more sociopathic. What is the motivation for rape and murder? There is none I can comprehend, no matter how low your income is or how difficult your childhood was. I look into Donte Johnson's eyes I am chilled to the core. He looks normal, and yet one night he decided to brutalize a stranger and leave her for dead. He is not a boy, but a monster that resembles one.
?uest, you state that when you were 18, you were in fact a man... "i too at one point was an 18 year old black man from philadelphia." Let me say, you still are a black man that lives in PHL. He's not a baby...Perhaps the mind of a child but a baby? Which is incapable of caring for himself or even wiping his own ass is a different story. He was already known to Philly police. Philly Principals in schools, ect. This kid had a record w/ Philly Police. 24 bags of crack ready for distrubution. I guess? maybe he just wanted that paper to be like you? Like NAS? like Puffy? Like? The fact of the matter? He's an adult, a predator and an 18 yr old that will and should be tried to the fullest extent of the law. What drove him to this? Society, his mom, rap music, crack, PUSH by Sapphire. Whatever. We all live in it or around it in Philadelphia and there is no excuse other than pure ignorance that drives any son of a bitch to take property from someone smaller and physically weaker than you, get triggered and rip their clothes off, rape, beat their face in and strangle them. Was that your 18? is that what any 18 year old think of when they are beating the pavement, out of school, roaming the street of Philly, hungry for success or hungry to be a millionaire so BAD. Whatever it takes? WTF ever ?uestlove, yeah that could a been you, that really coulda been me? Let's see what the rest of middle aged black "men" say. That coulda been anyone....at any given time and place in PHL. Keep diggn.
If an unemployed 18-year-old white man raped and murdered a stranger in a trailer park in Arkansas, would it be appropriate to talk about how cute he is and then start a discussion about how devastating moving away from a manufacturing based economy has been on rural white America?
Thank you, Debasri, for that wise and thoughtful response. On the one hand, I'm glad that caught this "monster". I really didn't know Sabina very well, but you only had to meet her once to adore her, so I was very sad and very angry to hear what happened to her. But, I also know that you could build a million new prisons and you could fill them up, but you'll never end this cycle of violence unless you invest in the health and the skill and the intellect and the character of our children. An eye for any eye won't bring her back.
WHY WOULD YOU EVER PRAY IT WOULD BE A WHITE 40 year old male? THATS SOME RACIST SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't want to go all crazy of ?uestlove. He has the right to form opinions too. However, making such a BOLD public statement when the fragility of the situation is still resonating with all of us just comes off disrespectful. Even without those intentions. So maybe ?uestlove does have more in common with Donte than we all think. ?uestlove tries to show empathy, instead it comes of overbearing. Donte tried to rob a bike, instead he robbed a life. You can clearly see how this conclusion is illogical. As someone who knew & loved Sabina dearly, I feel infuriated. TWENTY is a "baby" too then. But newsflash - babies don't go around stealing lives. Or stealing anything for that matter. If you want to use your "power of celebrity" ?uestlove, then i STRONGLY STRONGLY STRONGLY encourage you to talk to your fellow lyricists and rappers and hip hop artists to stop promoting this junk in their songs. It's not "cool" to get a life sentence when your 18. It's not "cool" to be gangster and take lives. That never was cool, that should never be cool. And overpowering doesn't make you "hard" it makes you more of a child than one could even fathom. I struggle so much with this issue. I am going to be a 2nd grade teacher in urban schools (Philadelphia)within the next 2 years. And I know that their lives and futures are in my hands. I am completely willing and able to accept that responsibility - but this "no snitch" "act hard" "be gangsta" attitude that is promoted through music everyday makes getting through to young boys, next to impossible. So please ?uestlove. Use your power for good. Leave your opinions to yourself. And learn from this, because the love for Sabina will conquer all (even the contempt I feel for Donte) but nothing and i mean nothing can bring her back. So learn, teach, educate and change. Now Sabina has a garden, and Donte has a cell.... Rest In Peace Sabina
Exactly HOW is a female drug dealer getting shot the same as a young woman riding home on her bike and getting beat/raped/killed the same thing? Are you delusional questlove? And HOW could Donte Johnson just be any black boy from the hood? RAPING SOMEONE AND SAVAGELY BEATING THEM TO DEATH IS NOT A METHOD OF SURVIVAL. Maybe your "essay" would make sense if Donte's life depended on taking her wallet. Maybe he if he NEEDED to steal and sell her bike because he knows nothing better because of how he was raised. But this wasn't to survive, this was premeditated. He WANTED to sexually assault her which had nothing to do with his own survival. I'm sure we could all be sympathetic if that were the case but this kid had a prior record! At first I didn't even think you were serious... but seriously dude, you're f******* loon. Oh, and The Roots aren't even that good.
"the 18 year old black man, the 21 year old innocent girl, and even YOU questlove are all HUMAN BEINGS" Steve, why would you call the accused a man and the victim a girl, despite her being older?
If your mother, sister, daughter, wife..was attacked by a stranger, brutally beaten, raped, strangled to death with her own bra, then left naked with a bra around her neck..how would YOU feel? Any of you who are so "compassionate" towarda Donte? You want to talk about Psychology but Im a freakig Psychology major and it doesn't take much to see that this guy has antisocial personality disorder, in other words he's heartless. I don't give a shit about what he been thru in his life-- NOTHiNg justifies what he did. And WTF does race have anything to do with this??? Please STFU!
I have no doubts that ?est had the best intentions in mind when he wrote this article. I don't think anyone that lives in Philly doesn't understand that the "School of hard Knocks" leads youth to desperation and tragedy on the daily. But this particular incident was not that. This atrocity was vicious, and predatory & primal. These were the acts of a violently disturbed individual and hardly fall into the category of "Young Black Male", or the trappings of growing up in the hood. This killer was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off. When someone is that disturbed they are sick in the head, regardless of race or socioeconomic background. RIP Sabina, my heartfelt condolences and support go out to your family & friends. You were clearly VERY well loved and will not soon be forgotten.
When considering the crime, it's only reasonable and humane to consider the young criminal who has exchanged his entire future for a few moments of demented gratification at somebody else's expense. Seeing this tragedy doesn't diminish the tragedy of the victim and or the gravity of the crime.
Unfortunately, I think ? undermined his entire argument by saying he wished it was a 40 year old white male. If a white male had said he wished a crime was committed by a black person, all hell would break loose. When I saw the picture of the accused, I immediately thought to myself, "Man, what happened to this person that they are capable of something so horrific?", which is somewhat similar to ?uest's response. I just simply don't understand the timing of his rant. This entire city is still mourning Sabina. Next time, think it out clearly and wait for the appropriate time to make a stance. Too soon, ?uest, too soon.
For everybody that is so quick to categorize ?uestlove's comments as insensitive, immoral, irresponsible etc., please take a step back and listen to the entirety of his statement, and not just the bits and pieces that jump out at you. This is a man who knew the victim, has raised money for her funeral expenses, and has spent time at her place of work. In no way shape or form is he saying that what happened to the victim was not a tragedy. Instead he is using the situation to shed some light on another issue today in society, especially the part of society where he grew up. While 18 is legally an adult, it is still very young. Did the assailent no what he was doing? Absolutely. Should he be held responsible for his actions? Absolutely. Does he deserve to be punished? There is no doubt about it. What this 18 year old (man or kid however you want to call it) did was monstrous, there is no debating that, and I don't think ?uestlove is trying to. What he is saying, and I agree with, is that Donte's environment growing up may very well have shaped him to become the kind of person capable of such a crime. Now I do not know how Donte was raised, I wasn't there so I can not comment for sure, but I am familiar with the area in which he was raised. And that area is one where it is very easy for someone growing up there to become desensitized to violence and crime. Does this absolve him of his crime? Not in the slightest. But it does raise the issue that maybe if Donte grew up in Chestnut Hill, in an upper-middle class family, then he would not have comitted a crime like this. Maybe he would be finishing high school, preparing for college and we wouldn't be having this discussion. Now this is all speculation of course, but it is just something to think about. There is a reason that these types of crimes are disproportionately concentrated in certain areas, and maybe if we addressed why this is occurring, we would not have to have this conversation.
Clearly you are not from around here anon, go back to where you came from.
Actually, the two things that seem to be the determining factors in why these types of crimes happen disproportionately in certain areas are population density and warm weather, not class or race. That is, again, why ?uestlove's entire moronic argument is irrelevant to Sabina's murder. ?uestlove points out that he's one of three men from his childhood who isn't dead or serving a long prison sentence. I want the names of his old friends who are locked up. I'd like to ask them if the same conditions in Philadelphia that led to their incarceration could have led them to rape and murder a young girl at random. I'd guess that no matter what their crimesare , they'd distance themselves from Johnson. Or maybe ?uestlove is right; maybe his old friends who are serving long prison sentences would embrace little Donte, pat him on the back, and say, "It's cool. Any of us could have done what you did. Our lives have all been hard and we might have raped and murdered that girl, too." Am I the only person reading this who views ?uestlove's argument as extremely racist, and NOT because he wished it was a 40-year-old white psycho? He's suggesting that ANY young inner city black man in Philly has the potential to rape and murder a stranger because of where he grew up. Any white supremacist reading ?uestlove's essay probably feels overjoyed and validated.
Many people seem to have had made their minds made up on ?uestlove's comments and what this murder (and the 131 other murders this year) means for the city. But here's recommended reading for all on the interlocking issues of crime, poverty, and race in Philadelphia: "Code of the Street" by (then-Penn prof) Elijah Anderson. He spent years working on this book, hanging out in and interviewing people from Philly's most impoverished and crime-ridden neighborhoods, probably not unlike the part of North Philly Donte Johnson grew up in. Most people here, I'd guess, have not grown up in these areas, let alone seen them. Here's a window. http://www.amazon.com/Code-Street-Decency-Violence-ebook/dp/B001GCUNSU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1276900706&sr=1-1
U all r racist white pricks
this is the real diplo... i have nothing against questlove, ive been a friend of him for some time... i just posted phawker.com but as the real diplo. who worked as a TSS in north philly for 1 year for W.E.S services.. ... as a wraparound for a gangly white boy, then a puerto rican and for a few black kids that went to Deburgos on Lehigh... this is after after teachin school at Broad and lindley at Logan Elementary for 2 years .. i eventually left work as a t.s.s. in disgust by the way the social services are set up in North Philly. and i can say i learned that people are fucked up and some people are products of their environment and can be givin a little benefit of the doubt.. i used to ride my bike from where i lived in east falls to go to Classes at Temple 8 year ago.. where id keep my money in my sock but ive never gotten robbed or assaulted in philly. but i lived on 11th st 2 blocks away from this kids house for the last 8 years played basketball with these kids.. walked up to Girard to get my building supplies and eat at checkers or get prescription drugs at CVS and .... I can say .... there is no excuse to rape a girl. so fuck this kid ... 18 isn't a kid anymore, and i wish when I djed at the piaza last weekend that Sabina was there smiling like she always was when i played in philly. btw im white
Anyone who posts and has an in depth opinion about this article would be considered a "thinking person," so that really isn't the brightest response. And while yes, this kid is a human being, ?uestlove sympathizes a bit too much with this- yes- monster. Just because he grew up in the same area does not mean he dealt with exactly the same thing, nor does it mean, if he DID in fact deal with said things, that they had anything to do with why he committed such heinous acts. Someone who is poverty stricken and has a hard life may be driven to steal, but to rape and murder? Please, act like one of those "thinking people" and think this over. Lust, passion and insanity will cause someone to commit these horrific acts, not growing up in a poor family/rough neighborhood. He assumes too much, and then has a skewed opinion on the matter. The fact is, even if the kid did deal with the same problems ?uestlove and others dealt with, not all of them chose to rape and murder some poor girl, therefor I have no sympathy for this beast. His actions were inhumane and disgusting, therefore I cannot look at him as "a baby," but rather as an animal who should be put down before he harms someone else for personal gain/pleasure.
And what "level" would this be? Should we all suddenly feel sympathy for any person under 20 who has killed, raped or beaten anyone? Hell no. Yes, hes a person. Yes, its sad that an 18 year old has thrown his life away- but he did so by raping and killing a 20 year old girl. He deserves no pity, nor humanity.
Not everything needs to be read in to. There are a few typos, as I'm sure the person was passionate about the writing, so it could be a mistake. Either way, boy or man, girl or woman, do any of these make this scenario better? No.
While I can understand where you're coming from, you have to think about other crimes, not just this one. Not all criminals come from backgrounds such as Donte's. Not all are even poverty-stricken. Not all are young, nor old, nor necessarily go through similar life experiences, nor do they all share the same life style. Whats to say that Donte would have done something different had he lived in a different area, been raised by different people, or had just been in a different environment? He got some sort of satisfaction out of raping and killing this woman, which is linked to psychopathic tendencies. That being said, he would have ended up getting the same rush/pleasure from the same acts had he been some rich kid. If there is something wrong with a person's mind that makes them get some sort of satisfaction out of horrific acts, then a different upbringing would not have helped. I'm sure his family did not promote murder and rape, yet he still committed these crimes. And looking back, there have been many psychopathic killers who lived completely ordinary life styles, so I feel that ?uestlove's argument, as well as parts of D.G.'s argument, is not very good/valid.
the thing is, unless this kid was witnessing rape and murder first hand, constantly, there is no excuse. There are NO circumstances where a form of living would drive you to rape and murder. None. Yes, breaking in to houses, stealing, robbing people/stores- these can be attributed to the area/lifestyle of the criminal. But rape? Murder? No. These arguments hold no stake. You have to realize that everything can not be attributed to where someone grows up or the things they dealt with in life. I have gone through some pretty horrific experiences, and I was poor for most of my life, yet the worst crimes I have committed were stealing a pack of gum at under 10 yo, and doing a drug in high school. So why am I not raping and murdering? Because I am not criminally insane. I do not get a rush or any sort of pleasure by seeing someone suffer. And, really, you have to understand- to be able to actually GET OFF by RAPING a woman? You have to be an incredibly sick, troubled individual. This is no boy. This is a monster, and should be treated as one.
Pot calling the kettle black? Sorry, but that is quite an ignorant response. And can you really tell the color of ones skin by their post? Cause I sure as hell can't. Most of these posts- if you even read them, which I doubt- have NOTHING to do with racism. In fact, those that ARE racist are REMOVED. These replies have nothing to do with race. They have to do with the validity of ?uestlove's response, which- by the way- was mildly racist. BY THE WAY- racism goes both ways, you ignorant prick. It can be any race hating on any race. Go get an education.
I don't think he was LITERALLY hoping it was white person. I think he was using that line as a figure of speech, using it to comment on the racism that typically exists when horrendous acts of this nature occur in this city, and in places all of the US. If Donte had not been caught, people would have assumed it was a black person who was not from the neighborhood, whether white people from that neighborhood want to admit that or not. Philadelphia has really intense race relations, and they shine through situations every day. They way black people/black community hope it was a white person who commits the malicious acts is the same as white people/white community assuming it was a black person. It sucks that there exists such a broad generalization between the people, the races, but for instance, in Old City, which is very close to NoLibs, I hear comments on a regular basis about how "dark" OUR neighborhood is becoming now that the city has cracked down on the Deleware Ave clubs. In the end, we all live here, Philadelphia belongs to ALL Philadelphians regardless of class, race or color. In order to combat these racist tendencies, it is important to place the blame where it belongs. Maybe on this kid's family, but more importantly, we need to hold Philadelphia's School District accountable for failing the youth. We need to hold accountable the police who perpetuate racism on the streets. We need to hold accountable and learn how to combat the drugs that infiltrate neighborhoods and turn them into slums and ghettos- war town neighborhoods that dissolve family relationships. And of course, then there are horrible parents and children who will ultimately turn bad, but that is a cheap cop out, for white and black, and every other color kids in Philadelphia, who get into trouble because of lack of guidance and other barriers they face as children growing up in an extremely segregated, impoverished, drug ridden metropolis. My deepest sympathies go out to both families, I can only imagine the distress, devastation and loss they are both experiencing for two totally different reasons.
In response to Jones' post, the fact that these areas are so densely populated is directly related to the socioeconomic status of the people that live in them.
Thank you QuestLove for proving your name suits you well. Your quest for love in this situation is remarkable and thank you for letting the City Paper share this. I hope that those responding on this site would stop for a moment to show as much compassion, or as much brilliance, as Sabina's family now that they have made a public statement that they are against the death penalty, even in this most difficult of circumstances. http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=7504714&rss=rss-wpvi-article-7504714 from the article: But as tough as this has been for them, Mark said, "I've never been in favor of the death penalty."
No class
I think we're forgetting something important here; not only did this guy brutally beat, rape, and strangle this young woman with her own bra, her tossed her body aside and had the nerve to go into her apartment building and look for homes to steal from. I used to be a fan on ?uestlove but I can't see how he can empathize with this guy or try to figure him out, I just don't. ?uest somehow made this about him and his upbringing not even being sure what kind of upbringing Donte had (none of us really do). We sit here, look at this skinny black boy's mugshot and assume his so-called shitty childhood led him to this point. NO his crimeS were a product of sheer convienence and circumstance he was aimlessly riding in circles looking for trouble (the video also showed him following another woman on a bike but because she got too far ahead he stopped following her)- so YES it could have been ANY woman- and that is NOT to take away from Sabina's last moments. The point is he is not a "kid" and he knew exactly what he was doing. So black, white, purple or whatever this animal stalked his prey and went for the kill.... Rest in Peace Sabina Rose O'Donnell
DONTAE WAS BAD BUT NEVER THIS BAD I CANT BELIEVE HE WOULD HURT SUM1 LIKE THIS HE WASNT STUPID AN HE LOVED HIS LIFE HE HAD LOTS OF FRIENDS AN GURLS BUT DONTE WAS A ROUGH NECK AT TIMES BUT BUT HE KNEW WHER TO DRAW THE LINE AT AN NOW LOOK AT EM HE COULDNT HAVE BEEN NORMAL THAT NITE AN HE FELT GUILTY THATS Y HE TLD THE TRUTH HE WAS MY EX BUT REGARDLESS WITH A CRIME LIKE THAT YOUNG OR NOT HE DNT DESERVE TO BE ON THE STREETS THAT GIRL FAMILY HAVE TO LIVE WITH IT AN SO SHOULD HE!!!!!!!
DAMN DONTE
While its a shame that a life was taken, why is it a surprise? Women need to be smarter when it comes to there safety. Instead of taking the risk of going home at 2 in the morning she should have stayed where she was and gone home in the morning. Dizzy hipsters need to travel in twos. Just because you live in the hippest neighborhood and you may have made it home in the wee hours before doesn't mean that you will always survive the trip. It's Northern Liberties! I have heard of like 3 violent incidents happening there in the last year or so. On one side you have the methy white trash of Fishtown and the other side is notoriously sketchy. Sitting ducks and easy marks. I went to high school at 4th and George and can recall 6 violent incidents that happened. In broad daylight. Just because you have a "right" to do something doesn't mean you should tempt fate and think you can get away with it.
A Letter to the Mothers' of Sabina Rose O'Donnell and Donte Johnson: It could stop with the crime that you both share the consequences. We could investigate if Sabina could have been prepared to abort her crime encounter with Donte. Wouldn't that be worth dismantling the sacred taboo of investigating the part intended victims play in their victimization? This is not blaming the intended victim, it's ensuring not only the safety of the intended victim but also a degree of healing for the would-be criminal. I'm sure Sabina's mom would like to have no other mother go through what she has been through, losing her daughter in such a horrible manner. And I'm sure Donte's mom would like to have no other mother go through what she has been through, having her son viewed as a monster not deserving to live. It can end with Sabina's horrible death and Donte's horrible deed. The following may explain how it happened and how in the future this type of scenario could be prevented. Peace, Betty It always takes two to tango. Donte Johnson's negative action of intending to rob Sabina of her bike triggered a negative reaction in Sabina Rose O'Donnell. Sabina being unprepared (unknowingly) in turn, reflected (subliminally) a negative self-image to Donte. This negative self-image is what Donte Johnson was attempting to wipe out (unknowingly) and thus we have a killing machine attempting to erase a subliminal self-image – a homicide that will end/ruin the lives of two people and both their families. We can all be prepared to have a humanistic pro-active subliminal response when our conscious egos are threatened, bruised and or punctured due to fear and/or danger either physical and/or psychological. Sadly, this involves facing a most sacred of all taboos - investigating the part intended victims play in their victimization. Investigation of the motives or the part would-be criminals play in a crime encounter is an OK endeavor, and this is all well and good. In the Torah it mentions that if you save one life, you save the world. I believe this is literally true. Being capable of saving one's own life does actually save the world - individually. This subliminal "unified field process" must be imbedded with its triggering mechanism of our conscious ego being threatened, bruised and/or punctured due to fear and/or danger either physical and/or psychological. This works equally well with those who experience the criminal acts of racism (from any race), anti-Semitism (reverse Semitism) and brutality coming from any segment of our society (even the men and women in blue). Call 215-338-6447 or 1-800-564-4096 for free tape, program description and illustrations. Peace, Betty
Questlove is right. Maybe if you people who are all out for vengeance have some insight and foresight and love in your lives, you'd realize what he was trying to say, what he DID say quite eloquently, is NOT what you're trying act like he said. What have YOU done to change anything? It's really easy to sit on a message board and condemn some kid for a horrible murder, but really - what do you have to add; to the discussion, to our city, to anything - other than hate and anger?
OK - 18 year olds can vote, go to war, get married, adopt children, sign legal documents - they are NOT BABIES. They are able to make choices... ie. the choice to rape and murder. I have worked with the ill, homeless, addicted - i feel for all who are showing the desire for change and making the effort. Aside from that, blame start in the mirror. ~peace
agreed.
what do (I) or any of us have to add!!?? we didn't commit the murder. OF COURSE WE'RE going to condemn him. you're seriously kidding right!!?? perhaps she should've been smarter not going home alone in that area ESPECIALLY at night.. at that hr. perhaps she should've taken a cab, perhaps if she realized she was being followed she should've headed toward bright lights or a 24 hr convenient store, busy roads, etc. perhaps she should've been escorted home. even if you don't live in the city women should not be traveling home alone on bike or foot living anywhere. even men though, they may not be raped but in that area they could easily be robbed and murdered. I'm not suggesting people that live in that area or any city for that matter stay home all the time and shelter themselves.. im just suggesting for people to use their head. self defense and martial arts is good for not only women but anyone and i think should be a definite necessity if you live in the city. A lot of people that live in cities and in philly don't think anything of it and it is the norm for them to travel alone or ride the el anytime of the day/night wherever they go. yes, she should've been smarter but to you and to the women who wrote that letter to the mothers, how can you seriously blame sabina or the people who are angry and filled with hate now!!?? that is a natural human reaction. the rest of us AREN'T monsters. that is the difference. maybe i had read your "letter" wrong with the point you're trying to get across.. but that is what i got from it aswell as the comment above. it is a sick sad world anywhere these days for the most part, but especially in a city.. philadelphia of all places where you have to be worried or think twice about traveling alone any time of the day, especially at night. i have many friends that live in the city girls and guys and this is the NORM for them.. some of them were born and raised there and some of them were not. do you honestly believe that if she had just given him her pink bike or any money she had that he would leave it at that?? it'd be nice to really think that but i am sorry i just do not whether that be a black, white, asian, indian, spanish man aproaching her, etc. me personally i would've just given him the bike and money and bailed. me personally i would think i would've tried to haul ass to anywhere "busy", lights, anything. me personally i would've had my phone in my hand dialing 911 and then calling my family or anyone i knew that lived around there who i could think to rescue me. i also carry weapons of protection on me always. this is all what i'd intend to do and think i would do, but when it comes down to it and it's actually happening.. from one female to another, you are probably in such shock as to what is actually taking place that you just freeze and you can't move or think, you are so terrified. and from what i've heard and understand she almost made it safe inside her apartment, but he snatched her as she got to her apartment building door. given everything DIFFERENT she COULD'VE done the only thing AT THAT POINT that i would've done differently is just give him the bike willingly, money, ect. and try to haul ass away as fast as i could but when that FEAR takes over.. i have been there in circumstances.. nothing EVER quite to this extent.. you don't know what to do.. you just freeze. Don't ask any of us what we would've done to change anything. Because and I don't know if you're a male or female but what would YOU have done differently?? I try and have common sense, I always go with my intuition and if something... ANYTHING doesn't feel right..I just DON'T do it. I believe me personally have been saved from a few events in my life that could have turned tragic because at those times I didn't use my head. I DO believe in guardian angels as stupid as that may sound to some of you I believe mine is my Grandmother.. My mom's mother. I believe in God aswell. I carry weapons of protection if need be which thank God I've never had to use. I am pretty physically fit and athletic.. I can haul ass if need be. Anyways, enough of my ramblings.. like i said everyone is entitled to their own opinion.. that's why they call them opinions.. but again making what this monster did as excusable on any level I just cannot and willNOT phantom because it is beyond mind boggling and distubring to me. and "it takes 2 to tango"... umm... yea I've heard that term mostly in RELATIONSHIPS when someone gets pregnant or 2 people having problems with a friendship or relationship. IT TAKES 2 TO TANGO to fix that!!.. NOT (in the moment) making someone CHOOSE to rob, beat, rape and murder you. and on a side note have you read or heard about donte's track record??... his mother should be ABSOLUTELY ASHAMED OF HERSELF to say the least and she should be locked up for harbouring a criminal. killing neighborhood animals at age 11, stealing a lady's car on girard ave last summer and then attempting to run her over with it, punching a police officer, threatening school teachers lives, he dropped out of school, he sold coke and crack.. they raided his mother's house where he lived this past april and found 43 bags of crack in his house but he was nowhere to be found. he was on the philly's most wanted list. his girlfriend whom lived on the same block as him AND his entire family knew it was him on that tape for about 2 wks before his mother and family escorted him in turning himself in. and he and people that knew him said "he was never right". his mother didnot turn him in, a tipster did a day after that video was released.
fathom not phantom* and as im sure most of you know he was seen on those tapes lurking around the area for about an hr before this took place and tried following another female on a bike who he couldn't catch up to. it digusts me too in quest's blod on twitter how he states that donte didn't appear drunk and/or under the influence of any drugs... yea im sure he could tell that being as those tapes were blurry as shit, before he was caught many people were asking to see enhanced tapes because it was hard to make out the individual in general. perhaps if he was locked up when the police raided his house and found them 43 bags of crack he would be locked up and this would've not happened to Sabina or whoever it would've turned out to be had it not been her. But it is unfortunate that this is only one of I'm sure just as many mentall disturbed, sick people out there in the world and even in the city of philadelphia. drugs and alcohol.. and i guess it effects everyone different but they've never effected me to make me want to do something as hanus as this or even to have the thought of any similar effect enter my mind nor has it anyone else i've ever known. rich, poor, upbringing, home environment, and/or race is NOT an excuse AT ALL. and who knows for sure but even if he wasn't drunk and/or any drugs.. they did find 43 bags of crack in his house a few months prior.. so it would not surprise me in the slightest if he was yet again even IF he was coked up.. noone i've ever known including myself would make someone go to the extent he did with her in what he did.
fathom*
Dear Mr. Thompson, I too, hoped that whoever killed that girl was white. And I'm whiter than Casper the frickin ghost. I was also, for the first time, scared to live in this neighborhood. Stalkers or crazy ex-boyfriends I can deal with, but the seeming randomness of this brutal act is what scared the hell out of me. I also wonder what happened to this kid, that it was ok to look for a victim to rob. And what kind of rage pushed through him when she resisted. Yes, he has probably had a tough life..most of us do..yes, we feel rage. but something stops us from inflicting it on others..physically anyway...That being said, I commend you for speaking your mind and thank you for your insight. I admire the hell out of someone with the balls to have empathy. I just don't understand this complete disrespect for life. Did he just go to far and was scared? Did he think that he had to kill her or he would be caught? So many questions. It is a sad thing for both of their families. Peace
wow. thanks for sharing.
thanks ya'll. i needed that conversation. starting with ?uestlove, all the way down. i have a little better understanding. no absolute answers to my question of how could it happen. but perhaps there are no answers. much love to all who are caring and thinking and doing something in the face of this tragedy. rip sabina
I hope Johnson spends the rest of his life being beaten and raped in prison. I have no empathy with this MONSTER whatsoever. He is purely evil. With his selfishness he has destroyed goodness and beauty and the hearts of thousands of people. No mercy for him whatsoever. Or for any other scoundrel who ever lays a hand on a woman, no matter what their skin color. ?uestlove, your sentiments are but thinly veiled racism.
?uest is mixing up a typical crime of urban plight and a rape and murder. This isn't your buddy from 3rd grade busted for selling crack. or this kid you used to hang out with getting busted for a botched armed robbery. I wonder how many of ?uests friends that are dead or in jail committed rapes. Not many. Maybe drug related murders but i dont no about rapes/murders. Rapists are the ones who go to jail and instantly become someones bitch and get the shit beat out of them constantly. Even the criminals know where rape stands on the totem pole of crimes. Sure the 'system' can be blamed for most of the crimes committed in the city, but rapes happen everywhere regardless of your skin. This isn't a black crime. I dont see JayZ rapping about girls he used to rape back in the day. Its just a sick crime that a 'monster' commits. ?uest maybe your little narrative applies to an innocent girl killed by a stray bullet.... but not here at all. And praying that the guy was white? Fuck you, man. I'm sure God really appreciated that prayer. I prayed the guy got caught and that PA decides to run embalming fluid through his veins. Thats shit you keep to yourself and your black friends. Cus that screams racism. I always liked black thought better.
He stripped her, beat her, raped her in apparently more than one orifice and strangled her to death with her bra. This is not something that "any one of us" could have done. Save your sympathy for someone with a conscience.
Rest assured I will never support the Roots music after this. Do you think white people don't ever grow up with hard lives? I'm a white female grew up visiting her father in the highest max prison around, mother a heroin addict that I'd find od'd frequently, I DID work as a social worker in North Philly for 6 years. I would like to know what your reaction would be if I said I hoped it was a black man!!! So one way. White people say something like that and shit hits the fan. But you, as a so called open minded artist, make a comment if whites said would be deemed racist and its okay?!! You think it matters what color the killer was?!!! How irrelevant! This was a life taken, a daughter taken from her parents. About a bike??!! F that?! He could of taken the bike and went. But he didn't. He choose to commit an act of a monster and that is what he is. You can serve this country at 18 so your not a baby. Your entering into adulthood. People growing up in the ghetto have a choice, get sucked in or do something about it. For some reason people from a black "ghetto" feel they have a right to excuse all their behaviors because of where they are from. I am from a affluent area but didn't have shit and had to go to school everyday not fitting in and not knowing if my mom would have a needle in her arm or the house swarmed with police when I got home. I don't cry how I grew up. I did something about it. Everyone has a choice in life. While its so kind of you to feel his "struggles" in life, he is an irrelevant nobody in this. Sabina and her family are where the affection lie. As a loyal roots fan, you lost my respect today. In your music, your persona, and I will never support your artistry again. Ill take the money to buy your cd or tickets and give it to sabinas fund. And I will tell every roots fan I know of your ignorance and racism. Hoping it was a white man...when does the poor black man story end and it just become that some people, regardless of color, grow up in tough time. THIS is why people are racist. Comments like you made that make white people so angry that you think you can get away with it. Way to focus on peace, harmony, and love in a time sabinas family needs. What if it was your child? Would the killer be a monster then? I'm sure. Your ignorance is sickening. Stick to playing music. I'm so tired of artists thinking their political voices mean a damn thing. RIP sabina and much love to her family. Ban the roots.
Yes, this man committed a crime. Yes, it was horrific. Is it wrong to pity someone who has fallen by the wayside? All you xtians out there who have nothing but bile and hatred for anyone who commits a crime need to remember that Jesus taught us to love the sinner and hate the sin. Pray for the victim, grieve with the victims family, but also pity the sinner. He will here on earth face the justice of the people of the City of Philadelphia. Then when he reaches the end, he will face a just God. If you believe.
I cannot even understand how you could write "it takes two to tango" with regards to this situation. It actually disgusts me that you could at all infer that Sabrina's actions are what lead to her brutal murder. If I were to call the numbers to receive your tapes, descriptions or illustrations of how insane you sound, I'd have a very good place to shove them.
THATS SOO KRASY OF HIM
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