It was different back then. We left our doors unlocked without worrying about an intruder coming in and taking our valuables, and neighbors looked out for one another. In fact, during those times, the African proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child” was a reality.

The community was an extended family.  The women down the street were our surrogate mothers and aunts and the old men who sat under the tree were like our fathers and uncles.

There has been a loud outcry within our community as well as throughout America about an innocent little girl who was prematurely taken from us. She was not reported missing until 30 days later, and once the investigation began, many lies were told causing a wild goose chase.

As drafted thus far, legislation will make it a felony if a parent, legal guardian, or caretaker does not notify law enforcement of the disappearance of a child within 24 hours or for them to willingly mislead law enforcement in the search for a missing child. Children are a gift and completely trust their parents to love, provide for, and protect them. That is our greatest responsibility.

It is undeniably unacceptable for a caregiver to know that a child is missing and purposely not report the missing child. You may ask, “How can a parent or caregiver not realize that a child is missing?”

However, with the many distractions of a busy, fast-paced life, it happens too often. A couple of summers ago, I recall hearing a story about a distracted parent who mistakenly left her sleeping baby in the car outside of her workplace. It wasn’t until several hours later when she heard co-workers discussing a baby that had been left in a car outside that she realized what she had done.

Although tragic, this parent did not deliberately neglect her child. The problem is when you know your child is missing and you decide not to alert the authorities or to give false information that hinders the search process.

A real parent anxiously searches for their child and doesn’t stop until they are found.

I would love to hear from others on ways to strengthen this legislation.