Boston organization aims to end silence about missing people of color
By Penny Kmitt, WBZ-TV News
BOSTON - National Missing Persons Day will be observed this Saturday, February 3, and an organization in Boston is using the occasion to highlight some of the unsolved cases in Massachusetts.
Mics for the Missing is giving a voice to the voiceless to spread awareness for missing Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC).
"It is our collective responsibility to save our children," co-founder Mayowa Osinubi told WBZ-TV.
"Every year we see that BIPOC folks are overrepresented in the numbers of missing persons, yet they are still very much under-supported and under-reported," she said. "The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) did a compilation of all their data and found almost 40% of all missing children are Black. So this is the most vulnerable of the most vulnerable."
According to NCMEC's recent data, 38% of AMBER alerts issued in 2019 involved children who were Black. Currently, the center shows at least 4,470 children are missing across America.
"Children are the most vulnerable among us and the numbers are just so stark," Osinubi said.
To combat this, Mics for the Missing is hosting a free event this Saturday at the Rabb Room inside Barnum Hall at Tufts University from 2 to 4 p.m. There will be a community action panel, conversations with community leaders and safety and prevention tips.
"We're tapping into the student population because it's important to have them involved," said Osinubi.
The event will also highlight some of the 73 missing children across Massachusetts, including Brandon Dingle from Lynn, who hasn't been seen since January 4th.
"The more we know and the more we raise awareness the better it is for our future," said Osinubi. "We all play a role in this work."
Those interested in attending the event can RSVP here.
