Audio By Carbonatix
The disappearance of 5-year-old Jahessye Shockley is now officially a race issue following some comments made by her grandmother, Shirley Johnson, yesterday.
Johnson’s upset by the lack of coverage Shockley’s disappearance has received in the national media — all while the disappearance of a missing Kansas City girl, Lisa Irwin, is dominating the cable news networks.
Irwin happens to be a little white girl. Shockley is black, which is why Johnson thinks the national press isn’t jumping on the story.
“It is because she is a little black kid,” Johnson told reporters yesterday “Arizona is known for this.”
When news happens, Phoenix New Times is there —
Your support strengthens our coverage.
We’re aiming to raise $30,000 by December 31, so we can continue covering what matters most to you. If New Times matters to you, please take action and contribute today, so when news happens, our reporters can be there.
Johnson may have a point, but there’s a slight problem with her argument: Arizona news outlets are the only ones giving this story any attention at all. In fact, the majority of local news outlets have featured Shockley’s disappearance on their websites (with the exception of the Arizona Republic) since she was first reported missing more than a week ago.
Arizona may not have the greatest history when it comes to its racial sensitivity (trying to cancel Martin Luther King Jr. Day certainly didn’t help things), but any decision to ignore the disappearance of a black girl is being made by non-Arizonans.
That said, we want to know what you think: is the national media ignoring the disappearance of Jahessye Shockley because she’s black?
Cast your vote below.
