COMPOUND TRAGEDY
A graduation and a funeral for one Trenton teen illustrate the complexities of dual pandemics: violence and COVID »
(Uh, Good morning. Good morning. Wake up, Mr.West).
A Trenton teen preparing for his ginormous day of high school graduation will never make that walk.
Instead, Malcolm Bowser, 19, will be prepped for burial days after he and friend Richard Guarderas, 18, both of Trenton, were ambushed early Wednesday morning as they sat inside a gray Kia on Stuyvesant Avenue around 4:09 a.m.
Investigators said an unknown assailant strafed the vehicle with bullets as both young men were pronounced dead shortly after the attack.
Numerologists might highlight that the boys registered as homicide victims No. 18 and No. 19 in a capital city being overwhelmed by loss of life or violence.
Bowser, a recent Trenton Central High School graduate enrolled in the STEM program, had appeared on a city billboard that honored seniors who had succeeded despite the massive challenges connected to the CoVid-19 pandemic, plus, social unrest.
Bowser and about 400 classmates waited for a July 17 graduation at Arm & Hammer Park, a celebration delayed by coronavirus concerns.
Kanye West, a presidential candidate raps, “you graduate when you make it up outta the streets.” If that’s the parameter, a benchmark, then Bowser and Guarderas fell shy of pomp and circumstance as the streets made them absent forever.
Guarderas allegedly had taken a one-year sabbatical then returned to STEMCivics Charter School in Ewing, ready for learning.
Leigh Byron, STEMCivics founder and head of school, noted that Guarderas’ return highlighted his commitment to education.
“So, it was sad to wake up (last week) to the news of this extremely tragic event, even sadder understanding the realization that we’re never going to see these young men again,” Byron said.
Not sure that matters in Trenton or any other urban landscape where life suffers depreciation and lacks significant response once taken. Suburban enclaves such as West Windsor, Robbinsville, Princeton, etc. would never accept a murder of two high school students willingly.
Media outlets give more value and voice exorbitant concerns for young Caucasian lives or minority children fortunate enough to enjoy middle-class existence. If they die unscrupulous or accidental deaths — they were cheated. Dead in Trenton? Expected. Accepted.
An internet search for Bowser and Guarderas recovered a dozen articles about their demise, plus typical responses from Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora and police Director Sheilah Coley.
Familiarity with murder and mayhem produce diluted emotions as a prepared statement may serve as sufficient. Simply insert a name of the newly deceased and wait for the next shot, the next murder victim.
Nobody bothered to find out about these teens as the presumptions figured they were gang-affiliated, somehow deserving of death and derisive disenfranchisement. Imagine life over one week before graduation.
“What do you want people to do? Protest,” a city education official and friend responded.
Personally? Want screams, blood-curdling ones, shrieks of anguish with decibels loud enough to break this deafening silence, mad as hell and tired of minced words remarks that produce even a tingling of life from this network of nerve endings.
“It’s incredibly sad,” Hope Grant, principal of Trenton Central High School, said.
“A week from graduation. It’s something that no one could have dreamed of happening. Our condolences, our love and support to (Malcolm Bowser’s) mother and family.”
Grant said she forwarded a Malcolm Bowser graduation photo to his mother. Bowser is featured on a graduation billboard on Perry St.
About a month back one local school requested a 5-minute video for its Class of 2020 graduates.
Declined the opportunity although would love to address Trenton Central High School graduates with this message — Run for your lives!
Get out of Dodge should be your next best bust a move as crime and gun workers injure or take lives.
Grant said graduation would offer a bittersweet finale to the TCHS 2019-2020 school year.
“We are still going to recognize Malcolm and he will be a part of our graduation ceremony,” Grant assured.
“I know there are no words that can be said to heal (his mother’s) pain. I’m hoping that this photo will provide some comfort during this really difficult time.”