A 30-year-old African-American was murdered; shot dead on a May night in 2011 in a basement just outside Newark, N.J. Cash and marijuana were found at the scene. He was a Yale University graduate and an almost straight-A student in molecular biophysics and biochemistry. Robert also dealt with marijuana. His family owned the home he grew up in.
Robert Peace sold Marijuana in college. After graduation he returned to his hometown to teach high school. In 2011 Jeff Hobbs got the news his formal roommate Robert Peace had been murdered while dealing drugs outside in Newark, New Jersey. The shooting drove Jeff Hobbs to try to make sense if he could of what happened to his friend. His interviews with the roommate’s family turned into a book The ‘Short And Tragic Life Of Robert Peace’.
Robert Peace was an African-American born to a hard working, single mom in a tough neighborhood during the crack epidemic of the 80s. Jeff Hobbs had the understanding that Rob’s father was in prison for manslaughter. As a matter of fact, it was for the murder of two women when Rob was 7 years old. His dad was jailed up for life. All this affected Robert; he revered he’s father who had been quite the “mayor” of the neighborhood. Robert was involved with drug gangs but he was still motivated to get an education.
He worked most of his life to try to free his father from prison. Even though he was a drug dealer, he was a good son who always tried helping his mom in every way. But to me, getting into the drug selling was a bad choice,because first of all its not legal and he was putting his life into risk. People sometimes think its something cool to make you stand out from the others but to my point of view its really not. He could of also found something else to keep helping his mom but unfortunately his love for the image of his dad affected him. He was a good guy besides making the wrong choices. Life depends on our bad and good choices that we all make.
http://www.npr.org/2014/09/23/350577398/remembering-the-short-and-tragic-life-of-robert-peace?utm_source=npr_email_a_friend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20140923&utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_term=
Austin • Feb 25, 2015 at 9:58 am
Peace made his own choice to be a criminal, as do so many others in his situation. Until we stop looking at them as victims and start expecting them to be lawful and moral adult citizens that situation will never change for them. It’s their choice and theirs alone, we can not make it for them.
NewsmanJim • Feb 3, 2015 at 2:35 pm
It’s sad what had happened to Robert Peace, but he did make his bed and now he has to lie in it. When going into distributing drugs, the distributor knows the pros and cons. Robert knew what he was getting into and he had a bright future ahead of himself considering he went to Yale. As a consequence of dealing, he has now left his mother without a son.
SavySo_Vicious • Oct 3, 2014 at 1:46 pm
This is an interesting news report. But this also reminds me of stereotyping. Some who kew Robert maybe thought that he was going to end up dead or in jail for the life he lived, but some probably thought his drive for an education would show him a better path a better way to live. Truly, if he used his brains and ambition to get a great career he could have fought his fathers case in a more professional manner. Instead, he chose the same life his father did ending up in a typical “black senenrio”, either locked up or dead”. Unfortunate, now a mother is without her husband and son.