Hope persists on anniversary of missing children

By James Muhammad | Last updated: Jul 21, 2004 - 7:58:00 PM

Surrounded by family, friends and religious leaders in prayer, Tracey Bradley (c), mother of missing girls Tionda and Diamond Bradley, and their cousin hold posters of computer-generated composites of what her children would look like today. Photo: Kenneth Muhammad

CHICAGO (FinalCall.com) - With prayers and tears of frustration, residents of this near South Side community released five white doves into the air July 6, in hopes of the safe return of two young girls, missing for three years. The girls, Diamond and Tionda Bradley, 3 and 10 years old respectively at the time, vanished without a trace the morning of July 6, 2001 after their mother left for her job.

“This is for you, Diamond,” the mother, Tracey Bradley, said as she released the first dove. “This is for you, Tionda,” she said, releasing the second bird.

The five doves represented the girls and the three years they have been missing, organizers said during a news conference held as part of the ceremony marking the anniversary of their disappearance. The only thing left by the girls that fateful morning was a note written by Tionda saying they were going to play in a nearby park.

A massive manhunt was conducted by Chicago Police and the FBI for weeks after the girls disappeared. It has since moved to the cold case file of the police department, but they stay very active with it, police officials said. That and reports of recent sightings keep the family and community hopeful that the girls will be returned safely.

“We’re calling upon 1,000 pastors to commit $1,000 to a fund to put up billboards throughout the Midwest,” said Min. Bamani Obadele, associate pastor of Greater Harvest M.B. Church and deputy director of External Affairs for the Illinois Dept. of Children and Family Services (DCFS).

The billboards will feature age-progressed pictures of the girls and a number to call with information, organizers said. But Min. Obadele also lamented that other billboards, asking men not to abuse their children, already are on display.

Earlier in the day, organizers led a three-block walk to the doorsteps of the apartment building where the family lived the day the girls disappeared. Ms. Bradley said she has since moved to another community so that she can attract less attention and gain a little more peace of mind.

James Miller, a private detective who has been working the case pro-bono since 2001, said a sighting was recently reported in Indianapolis. An investigation did not yield positive results, but Indianapolis has become a focus of the hunt, he said.

Search for the children has taken investigators to distant countries where they first thought the girls might have been taken by the fathers, but Mr. Miller no longer thinks the fathers are involved in the disappearances.

“The FBI has been to Morocco and Mexico,” he revealed, indicating the ethnicity of the two fathers. “We have put the fathers under surveillance, but that has yielded nothing.” Mr. Miller and local pastor Rev. Paul Jakes noted distinctions in media coverage of the missing children. Mr. Miller said studies show a color-bias in the reporting, while Rev. Jakes described the distinctions as a class issue.

“Elizabeth Smart in Utah gained national attention, yet when Black children are abducted the media focus is local, if it is covered at all. Classism is real,” Rev. Jakes said.

Bystanders at both rallies say the daily rallies that occurred for weeks after the girls disappeared and the now less frequent gatherings have made participants feel more like family. But everybody also is moving on with their lives.

“Nobody believes they are dead,” said Zakiyyah Muhammad, an activist who helped to organize many of the daily vigils in 2001. “But there are also a lot of people who say the mother might know more than she lets on.”

That has been a thought also expressed publicly during the investigation by police officials. To that, Ms. Bradley responds: “Whoever has my daughters, if you have a heart, then let my kids go. It’s been very hard, but the Man upstairs is what’s helping me to get through this.”

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