Untreated Trauma: The Cradle to Prison Entrance Exam By the Reverend James C.

Simmons Senior Pastor, Baber African Methodist Episcopal Church Chairman, Rise Up Rochester, Inc. In the 2013 State of the Union Address, President Barack H. Obama stated, We will keep faith with our veterans investing in world-class care, including mental health care, for our wounded warriors; supporting our military families; and giving our veterans the benefits, education, and job opportunities they have earned. Like the rest of the country, I wholeheartedly support the allocation of mental health resources and services to the men and woman that have bravely and unselfishly served our United States of America. However, the need for world class care, including mental health care, is not limited to Americas military forces. In 2012, 40+ persons primarily minorities - were prematurely murdered in the streets of Rochester, New York. Each homicide victim leaves behind family members and friends to deal with their loved ones unexpected departure. Each victim leaves relatives, co-workers, and classmates to sort through shock, anger, and denial. Each victim leaves persons behind to grieve and reconstruct their lives to a new normal. George M. Streets, M.D., notes in his essay, The Homicide Witness and

Victimization; PTSD in Civilian Populations: A literature Review, that: People

who witness the murder of an individual, whether a family member or acquaintance, often experience their loss as a physical trauma. This described trauma is revealed by the symptom complex defined in the DSM-III-R as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Children, in particular, frequently suffer from debilitating grief, which hinders their emotional and cognitive development. This grief may masquerade as a learning disability, hyperactivity, or an attention deficit disorder.

Families, especially children, that experience homicide and witness spilled blood in the streets often deal with untreated trauma that disguises itself as learning disabilities, hyperactivity, or attention deficit disorder behaviors often treated with medicine, school discipline and special education classes instead of appropriate mental health services. Untreated trauma disguised as behavioral problems leads to social exclusion and introduces a trajectory that more often than not leads to either the cell or the grave. destroyed far too many communities. In other words, untreated trauma is the entrance exam for the cradle to prison pipeline that has