Summer of the Gun (Oh Jane) memory for Jane Creba ... Bailey Zaveda ... John O'Keefe ...

Song specifically about the Jane Creba murder and recurring violence in the city. Did she die in vain? Or are we going to do something? The victims keep on coming.

The comments trail since KEITH posted the video makes for enlightening reading. But, we believe ironically, not in a positive way! Surely we can agree that gun play is not a viable way to settle disputes - gangs or no?

For further reading see: http://tdotmurders.blogspot.com/2008/09/homicide-50-william-junior-appiah.html

From April 2, 2010 issue of Toronto Sun: "Four of the 10 people originally charged in the shooting that occurred amid the teeming crowds of Boxing Day shoppers on Toronto's main street were convicted, two of murder and two of manslaughter. Five were acquitted and one was discharged after a preliminary hearing. The prosecution is appealing those acquittals."

This comes some four and a half years after the shooting happened on December 26, 2005.

It is noted that Jermiah Valentine fired the .357 Magnum bullte that likely caused Jane's death. He was shooting at a large group of people including Rapheal Louis Woodcock and Jorrell Simpson Rowe both convicted of manslaughter in the shooting. Tyshaun Barnett is the fourth convicted (with Woodcock on April 1, 2010).

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Jane Creba
• Jordan Manners
• Ephraim Brown
• John O'Keefe
• gun crime in Toronto
• City of Toronto
• JSR
• Raphael Louis Woodcock
• Tyshaun Barnett
• Jeremiah Valentine
• Summer of the gun 2005
• Bailey Zaveda
• Hou Chong Mao
• Rachel Alleyne
• Chantel Dunn
• Livvette Miller
• Derek Wah Yan

[whinersmusic]

1/3 Hi, KEITH here, just wanted to add to the trail ... my intent in writing and presenting this song is to speak about the victim. I never thought of it as some white dude ranting about a white women who was shot by a black guy - it's not about race - if it were I would have added references to colour in the song.

[dundem187]

@whinersmusic

Unfortunately/ultimately that's what it boils down 2. THAT'S y this particular case garnered so much attention/outrage. Ppl have been shot inside & around the eaton centre b4 but garnered little reaction from the city.

& even though it was not your intention to make it a race issue, it would be hard to ignore the fact that it is.

[whinersmusic]

Well, if people want to make it an issue of race it will be. That continues to avoid the innocence of the victim though. I personally believe anyone murdered that day and in that context would have received as much attention.

The end of the song begs the question: are we in full seasons of the gun? I still ask what are we going to do about using guns to solve issues? Like to hear more thoughts about that here. vs. excuses and diversions. Or maybe Ppl don't care about that as much as I.

[whinersmusic]

2/3 A songwriter note: when I sing the line "he should be in ..." I deliberately left the next word out. Many people may infer the next word would be "jail" but that isn't my intention - to me the word could be "school" or "working" . I wanted the listener to draw their own conclusion. So, it has nothing to do with colour but with the situation itself. Out on bail vs. not being in the position to have been out of bail in the first place.

[whinersmusic]

3/3 The issue for me is - did Jane die in vain? Can we learn from it and stop the gun play? Since I posted the song gun crime continues unabated. I never thought I'd change the world but in our little comment-sphere here, I am certainly surprised at the amount of venom. Perhaps I can issue a challenge to future and past posters of comments: can we agree a "gun play" solution is wrong? Further, can we agree that cultural understanding is something we can all work on? Let me know!

[RICK6132]

i can,t belive how many rude pricks are on here a young girl who,s life was cut very short for no reason at all and all some rude pricks can do is come on here and cry the blues cause all they here is how a very young girl had her life taken the fuckers who took janes life i hope they pay for it for the rest of their life so to all the rude pricks i think you should show jane and her family some respect

[whinersmusic]

I'm posting all comments here be they respectful or rude. What concerns me (as the author) is that many of the comments do show a level of insensitivity toward innocent bystanders who have been murdered as well as an intensity toward each other (black, white, asian, jew etc) ... very discouraging to me!

[floatingcompassmedia]

i hate toronto

[dundem187]

@whinersmusic

Gunplay solution is wrong? That's not what society teaches. Goverments go 2 war, cops shoot unarmed citizens. Compliance usually comes @ the end of a barrell. I agree with the latter part, but most white people posting stuff about jamaicans NEVER grew up around any or encounter any outside of work/school. Black ppl's assumptions about whites come from a lifetime of daily interraction with them. What r they basing their arguements on? The media?

[miaelisabetta]

@arykhoon you would not be typing this if it was one of your family members SHOT DEAD! so shut up and learn to respect the dead...or else you will get whats coming to you. and it aint good. Karma is a bitch....u will learn this the hard way. What u type on here was so low...especially about a dead girl.  Show some respect.

[dundem187]

Whitempeople are always the most opinionated on subjects they know very little about or they try 2 dissmiss facts as "political correctness" and refer to their oown biases (based mostly on media reports/perceptions) as 'facts".

[GlaBurnzUrHouseAK47]

White racism example right here, how this girls gets all then media attention, given so much resources for investigation when racial minority dont' get shit, when they are mostly the victims.