#91! #91!, #91!
Does that number mean anything to you?
She is not just a number. Her name is Esscence Tyler Christal. She was my child, born April 2, 1990. She was a loving daughter who would sing me a song but didn’t know the words. She would call me every single morning at 9:15 AM, just to say, “Good morning Mommy! What are you doing?” knowing I was working, and ending by saying, “I love you.” She was my baby who read stop, and do not enter signs at the age of two. She was my baby who would take her first step at 10 months old. She was my baby who I will no longer hear say, “Mommy I love you.”
July 22nd, 2005 was the only day I ever dreamed of losing my baby cause it was the night before I would get married. Esscence had just given birth to Dwayne 3 days prior, so that night, she crawled in my bed with my new grandson and said, “Mommy, I guess today is the last day to be your baby!!” Never thinking I would literally lose my baby.
On November 26th, 2011, Esscence was driving down Broad Street in Providence when a dark colored vehicle pulled alongside the passenger side opening fire and hitting only her, leaving the car along its topside engulfed in flames, brought to a hospital, left on a bench and dying alone.
This year (2019), Dwayne graduates middle school but because Esscence was brutally taken from us, he will not get to share these moments with her. She did not see him play the violin in his first concert. She did not see him work his first job in 3rd grade. She did not see him get his first touchdown that won the game. She did not see him bring home a huge trophy that he won in the super bowl. She will not see him graduate high school. She will not see her first grandchild, and she will not tell him I love you.
Not only was Esscence taken in a tragic drive-by, my daughter was also taken in silence. She did not ask to get smacked so hard she would hit the door. She did not ask to be put in a closet because she found him cheating. She did not ask to be burnt on her leg with a cigarette lighter. We did not ask for her to be chased, gunned down, and murdered.
In 2016, an article was released showing that 42% of murders were unsolved in Providence from 2000 to 2013 with Esscence being listed as #91 on this list.
Dimitri Perry is not a number, Sandii Fahnbulleh is not a number, Robert Denson is not a number, Steven Latimer is not a number. We did not ask those individuals to pick up those guns and murder Our Child!! We did not ask you to number her as an “Unsolved Murder” and put her in a file cabinet.
Esscence is not a number, she is my child!
Esscence is not a number, she is my child!!!
I am not asking guns to be taken from law abiding citizens, but I am asking our legislators to implement stricter gun laws. I am asking our legislators to ban assault weapons, and I am asking you to join us in the fight to end these senseless acts of violence by getting involved with your community, Everytown Survivor Network, and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.