4 Years in Hell with Cook County Probate Courts!

The case of trying to save one black child has reached the final stage of a lengthy 4 years process: In less than a month, this four years custody battle with Joyce Washington will be finalized. On November 8th and 9th we are going to have a two-day trail to decide whether or not the biological mother, Joyce Washington, will be regaining custody of Zion.In my soul, I can’t see how Joyce will be able to get him back. However; I know when you take a chance in court, it can go either way. On one hand, it seems that the Courts would say that a child should go back to its biologic mother and it’s not important whether she can take care of the child or not. Some people would say that we have a lot of children with mothers who can’t take care of them! And most importantly to them, by taking the child from the birth mother leads to children not knowing their parents. And the government caters doings this heavily within the “black communities” which causes a breakdown in many families. Thus, the states take cares of the children of these mothers whose ability to render care to their offspring is insufficient. But this is the norm as it’s began a line of children who become adults supported by a states welfare systems Now, let’s look at how the State of Illinois Statues governs this issue: “We are a Child- First- State which clearly favors the best interest of the children when placing them back with their biological parents. These laws have a list of issues that must be resolved before a child can be placed with its biological parents: A parent must be financially and mentally capable of rendering suitable care to a child before gaining full custody of them once the state has been force to step in to care for these children. This is how Joyce became a ward of the state till her 21st birthday; and what also lead to us getting Zion place with us; in one cases you had a mother who felt that they could take care of their child as long as the state let her and in the other you had a mother who did not want a child and was force to have it. Personally, I had been looking forward to the day, which will bring closure to this overdue matter. I personal fill that Zion’s life will be destroyed if he is uprooted from our home and forced into a life that has no future. In one case you had a mother who did her best to make a way for her child and in the other you have mother who want a child to make a way for her self. We have too many children (Blacks) who are living on the street struggling their way through life. We are living in a time that is not like any other; times are hard and our children need more than the basics to make it in today’s times. And I can tell you that if Zion is forced into the hands of Joyce Washington, it will be giving him a free one way ticket into the “Department of Corrections”!Yes this is a Fact! Some people will say why am I making such a strong statement about Joyce and her inability to render proper care for Zion? Well, Joyce hasn't shown that she is capable of taking care of a child like a mother should be! She has constantly misled the State of Illinois Child Custody Unit to believe that she is fully capable of raising a child! Again it’s true that Joyce has kept a place to live for the past two years, but this was done at the expense of the American tax payers, who were paying 100% of her living expenses: rent, lights, phone, food; and all other living needs down to her personal hygiene.

Well, as of September 22, 2010 everything ceased because of her age; Joyce turned 21, and her free ride came to an end. Now, Joyce was forced to pay rent for the duration of this year and her life on a Subway salary that I have been told amounts to $500 a month. Joyce will be force to face some of the same hardships that most of the American people have dealt with recently. Joyce actions or non actions in life have made her a prime candidate for a local homeless shelter because of her inability to survive under the harsh circumstances that lie ahead in her life; now do we want Zion to live this life with her?

Joyce has lived for Joyce for the past 4 years and she has done this on her own. However; Zion is a 4 year old boy that lives for his family. And this street life is a life that he might be force to grow up in; if he is force from the only home he knows back into the world of Joyce.

Would school be a major issue for Zion under a Joyce? I have to say no it will not. Joyce will not take the time to get up and make sure that Zion makes it to school everyday she will not push Zion to do good in middle school so that High School will be just as easy and a stepping stone to Collage and then on to some type of 2nd degree so that he can grown up to be a strong Black man that brings something to this world; and not one that looks to take something from others.

The things that I talk about are not things that we all see everyday on the streets of Chicago; I see the little black boys who walk the streets with no hope; I look at all the little boys of color that fill the jails cells of Cook County and it is fact not fiction that we have more black boys going to Jail then Collage and I have fought all these years to make sure that this is not the life for any of my 3 boys including Zion;

I have been fighting for them and have giving up a lot for them; so that they can have life better then mine. As parents we should all work for a better life for our children; I want mines to be better then me; I want mines to get a better education then me and at this point they will need to get a PHD or JD to do better them me.

I have four children that love school and they understand the reason that they are going and this include Zion. He knows at the age of 4 something that Joyce does not know at 21; and that’s without school he can’t get the things in life that he loves. We have place into him this seed and we have been nurturing that seed all these 4 years. I’m not a fool; I know that if Joyce gets her hands on Zion it will be so easy for all that we have done for him to die under the darkness that life would bring to him living with Joyce.

A lot of us grew up in homes where our elder did not go to High school; let along collage and this could have been a burden on our out come; however it was a different time then and our elder wanted us to reach goals that they could only dream about. This is something that is missing from a lot of our young parents now days; we have a large number of “ I don’t care” parents now days; and they don’t care if there child goes to school or those who go have non involved parents who don’t care what they are doing while they are at school.

On November 8th Joyce will have to prove to the court that she can take care of Zion; she will have to prove to the court that her life has change since the 2008 court date when the Judge gave us legal guardianship of Zion. At that Point Joyce was living in a group home and the state of IL was taking care of her and in that 2 years time she move from the group home into a apt that was still being paid for by the state; so she moved from one group home to another in my view; and she needs to go out and show that she can make a life for her self on her before this court place Zion into her care.

This case is one that on it’s face seem like a hand downs; and I could read the tea leaves and say that we should see 2010 come to a end with Zion still at the only home that he knows; however reading tea leaves is something that I can’t take a chance in doing. I feel that just like in 2008 Zion has a strong GAL this time around who wants to see what is in the best interest of Zion in 2010 and I hope that some of you can make sure that she keeps her focus on Zion and not this faux thinking that it’s better to place a child back with a biologic parent who can’t and won't take care of them; then leave them in a home where they see the people in that home as there one and only family.

Inclosing if you are not able to make it out on November 8th and would like to send the GAL a letter about this case I can give you her name or address if you Email me at Riv1906@aol.com . If you have ever meet Zion and talk with this 4 year old about family he would tell you about his mother that pick him up from school and helps him with his homework and gives him love; he would talk about his big brothers that get him up for school and helps get him dress and he wants to get big like his big brothers and how he love to chase; jump and play with one. He will talk about his big sister Stacie that is going to Collage that drives him to school some days and how she takes him to Chucky Cheese when he does good in school and how she puts him our of her room when he goes thought her stuff but he still loves her. If you talk to Zion about Grandma he will talk to you about how he goes to MS to see his and how she takes him to Wal-Mart and buy him things and how he just love going to her house and playing out side and how much she loves him and this is my wife mother. And Grandfather to him is my dad; this is the person that comes over and gives his brother; sister and him money. And last he has his daddy; not any type of dad; but a great one that he calls “my dad” that give him what he wants and needs and had taught him how to fish and play baseball and takes him to the games. When Zion wants something and mom will not get it for him; he likes to say he is going to ask his dad and most of the time he gets his way with; but when he knows he has done bad he does not want anyone to tell his dad as this will make his dad sad

Well; as I stated in the start of this letter you cannot tell what will happen when you deal with the courts. I just found out today 10/18 that our November 8th court date has been cancel and we are going to have to wait till sometime in 2011 to bring this case to an end. My family life is once more place on hold and it seems to me that this life for my family will once more be place on hold. And if I’m told once more that Joyce is Zion mother and that gives her a right to bring hell to her life; I will just lose it! If this right of being a mother is so important then how was the state able to take Joyce from her mother; how is it that DCFS can take children from their homes with just a hint of abuse; and when Joyce abuse Zion we are told then she has no rights.