Murder of a Brother

Loosening a beloved is one of life’s suffering experiences. Feelings of remorse are overwhelming, especially if the beloved’s death can be prevented. The New York Times Review editor Brent Staples recounts his sentiments over the loss of his loved brother, Blake, who was only 22 years old and lost his life. Blake was assassinated by a young man aged 24. The gunman, who was also Blake Haus’s long-standing friend, camouflaged with the ski mask, and shot six times at close range, with his huge 44 Magnums, then vanished. The main reason for this incidence was most likely due to argument over a girlfriend. This rivalry must have transitioned from mare posturing that led to threats, violence and finally the murder of Blake. Both Blake and his murderer had experienced life of hate and violence in their neighborhood and death was no news to them (Staples n.p.).
Obstacles that Prevented Brent from Saving His Brother
First and foremost, the environment in which both Brent and his brother lived was highly conducive for crime. Chester, Pa., was a heavily black, industrial city infested with anger high rates of poverty. This was a city where young men and women were introduced to mortality due to frequent and sudden occurrences of crimes and violence. The youth of this city were heavily immersed in acts of violence and criminal attacks that became a fad and norm taken up by everyone. Everyone in the neighborhood developed attitude of violence and felt that their manhood was measured by how violent they are. The youths of this city were desperate of being real men and this was defined by how violent and criminal one is. Killing was a strong masculine pride taken up by every individual in this city. This was an obstacle Brent could not undo; it was just not possible to change the mind and attitudes of these young men following the beliefs of violence their environment inculcated in them. This environment also allowed efficient and easy access to weapons of killing and violence like short guns. The types of games, such as pool games, resulted in conducive opportunities for gambling that eventually led to violence in the city. This was a place where joblessness was the order of the day, and people could go for better means of survival; this meant that selling drugs and doing crime came handy for survival (Staples).
Another major obstacle that prevented Brent from saving his brother was the physical distance between them. Brent moved away from this town in search of a better life free from crime and violence. He was fed up with the violent life in Chester and moved to Chicago. Brent rarely visited his brother and the family back in the embittered town they grew up in. this made him feel emotionally beaten as the means to protect himself was mean and not considerate of his brother and the family back home. In as much as Brent fared for his brother_x005F_x0092_s life, the physical and emotional distance between them acted as a big stumbling block preventing him from convincing Blake to abandon the romance that he had nurtured for crime and the hustler image that had dangerously flowered in him. Had the physical distance between the two reduced, Brent would have been in a position to save his brother from violent life that eventually led to his death.
Conclusion
Brent would really have loved to help his brother move away from the crime life and escape death at a tender age. However, he experienced various obstacles that prevented him from saving his brother. These obstacles were environmental and the physical distance between them.

Work Cited
Staples, Brent. “A Brother’s Murder.” The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/30/magazine/about-men-a-brother-s-murder.html. Accessed 13 March 2017.