Stanley Williams: Murderer, Thief, Philanthropist

“Stanley Williams – Murderer, Thief, Philanthropist.” This was how a bibliography website described the occupation of Stanley Williams. It was very bizarre to see those three strikingly different words in the same sentence because they don’t normally belong together. Stanley Williams was not at all what anyone would classify as normal though. He grew up with very bizarre living conditions. Stanley Williams was born on December 23rd 1953 in New Orleans, Louisiana. His father left the family early on and forced Stanley’s mother, who was seventeen at the time to raise him. In 1959, he hopped on a greyhound train with his mother and moved to sunny Los Angeles. He started wandering the streets at six shortly after moving because he found his home life boring. He had to quickly learn how to defend himself on the streets and described that he could only either be the predator or the prey. Without strict parental influence, William grew up idolizing criminals, pimps and drug dealers. During his times on the street, he met Raymond Washington. Together, they founded one of the most notorious gangs in the United States-the Crips. Through the gang, he was accused of performing terrible atrocities. He was accused of killing four people through actions supposedly accepted by the gang. It’s sometimes disputed whether or not he killed those people at all. In one newspaper, an author strongly voices his opinion that Williams didn’t even murder the four. The author even says, “This society needed a Black man to kill and they killed him”. (New York Amsterdam News) It’s believed that Williams didn’t even kill the four people he is accused on killing. Many people think it’s the fact that he had a biased, all white jury during his sentence. Although ...

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...sounds a bit far fetched to say that a single man could change the world but it’s true. He was the single domino piece that needed to be here before a revolution could occur. With his experience, he could’ve helped demolish gang activity and change today’s youth. He never confessed to the murders he was accused of participating in but if he did commit the murders, I don’t find him at fault. There’s no denying that if he did happen to commit the murders, it’s definitely tragic and terrible. He should definitely pay the price for the lives of those lost if he committed the crime. He should also get a lesser time sentence or get his sentence changed to life without parole because of the lives that he potentially saved through his writings. He was wrongfully killed by a broken system but he’ll remain forever alive through the people he has touched through his activism.