All too often in hoods across America, bright lights are extinguished before the world can see them shine. Sometimes, a person represents a better tomorrow for struggling communities, but when they go before realizing their true potential, the hopes and dreams of many are crushed. The West Side of Chicago is currently mourning 25-year-old boxing prospect Ed “Bad Boy” Brown, who was gunned down on Sunday.
According to ABC 7, Brown was shot in the head:
Brown and a 19-year-old woman, who was also wounded and in good condition, were sitting in a parked vehicle about 1:10 a.m. in the 3200 block of West Warren Boulevard in the city’s East Garfield Park neighborhood when a silver vehicle pulled up and someone inside shot at them, Chicago police said.
Only becoming a professional fighter two years ago, Brown became one of the elite contenders in the world by amassing a flawless record of 20 wins and no losses (16 KO’s). However, the gifted pugilist was troubled for a while. As a little boy, his mother was killed in the tragic E2 nightclub stampede in 2003. According to MEL Magazine, before Brown met his fate on Sunday, he had been shot ten times (separate occasions). In 2012, he was slated to compete in the Olympic trials, but couldn’t attend because he’d been shot in the neck, after being caught in the crossfire of a drive-by on his block. “They was trying to call me ‘Bulletproof’ ’cause I been shot so many times and those bullets can’t stop me,” he said in an interview. “The doctors said I would have died if I wasn’t in such good shape from boxing,”
Nevertheless, a rising star has fallen. He can’t realize his ambitions. His family and friends will never see him win titles or fight on Pay-Per-View. I’m sure some young folks have lost a role model. It’s unknown why Brown’s killers did what they did. His past implies that he was with the shits a little, but how has eliminating him benefited anyone (beyond petty street reasons)? I think it’s safe to say this is just another senseless murder. Instead of adding notches to his title belt(s), a young man once touted as boxing’s next big thing is just a statistic.
