LAWANDA HAWKINS: December the 6th, 1995– my son was murdered. That ended the life LaWanda knew.
All of us get our kids murdered, loved ones murdered, and we're here– treated with no dignity, no respect, we're hearing these derogatory names, people stepping on evidence, [siren] no reward, no door to door.
So we're like, "Wait a minute!" How are we going to attack some of this stuff? What issues are we going to take on? What are we going to do to make a difference? What are we going to do to see that someone else don't become a victim of this crime? And what are we going to do to let people know that this did happen and it's happening every day?
We got together and created this organization called Justice for Murdered Children. We felt as though families in South Central L.A. had to have someplace to go. We had to have something beyond just burying our kids and therapy. There had to be something else.
KATHLEEN CADY: LaWanda really is a problem solver. She networks with law enforcement. She's on the Mayor's task force to be called out and to respond to help the family immediately. She goes to court when there are cases that have been charged and the criminal justice system is proceeding, she will go and she will accompany families to help them through difficult times. She is a great resource and a great advocate.
LAWANDA HAWKINS: Until we, as people, look at all lives and say, "All lives matter," we all are going to continue to be victimized by this. Fight to the end. You fight. That's what we do. We fight. We don't just lay down and just let them beat us down. We get up and we fight.
