What great statistics!

When looking for a commentary, I came across this one which is about how children are being affected by our economy crisis. In this commentary there are quite a few statistics that just blow my mind. One statistic, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, states that almost thirty percent of the freshman class will drop out this year. If that is not crazy enough the number actually jumps to forty percent when in urban areas. Wow! This statistic alone made me want to see how I could help.

The next statistic is that twenty percent of the violence in America is done by young people during the hours of three and four which is right at the end of a school day. Violent juvenile crimes go up, according to the statistics by Duke University’s Center for Child and Family Policy. The author seems to be proving the young people need something to do and a place to go after school.

I think the author did a great job by adding these statistics to his commentary because of the fact that they help make it convincing to go help out this organization. I would have to assume that these statistics are true since he gathered this information from credible organizations. This information gives readers another reason to consider joining the efforts because of the difference someone can make in quite a few of these children’s lives.

This commentary was written by a man named Denzal Washington. It seems to me that he is well qualified for this job and very credible. One reason I think he is credible is because he is not out there just preaching it, he has actually been a part of The Boys and Girls Club in New York and was a part of this club till he turned eighteen. So he knows and understands how important this club can be for young boys and girls because he states how much in had an impact on his life. Another reason he is credible is because people would recognize him from his acting career and assume he knows what he is talking about. He is also credible because he writes commentaries for CNN and I assume there are certain rules and standards he has to follow.


At the end of this commentary he asks that we all join him in this effort with a list of ways that we can help and make a difference. This means that his intended audience would be anyone affected by these statistics and interested in joining him in his efforts.

I think the most convincing part about this article is that he states he would not be the man he is today without the influence and help of this organization. To me this was neat because he is proof that the Boys and Girls Club is helping kids and changing the direction of their lives and proves worth joining the effort to help out these children in need.