by Memorie Knox

CHICAGO (FinalCall.com)�The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a record number of cases last year involving Black children, and they say that dubious record may be broken this year.

Two missing Black sisters in Chicago are among the latest to be entered in the NCMEC�s missing children database, and posters bearing their images and information about them have been distributed through its worldwide network.

Families, religious organizations and community groups of all races have traveled from across the country in an effort to locate 10-year-old Tionda Bradley and her little sister, 3-year-old Diamond. The two girls were still missing without a trace at Final Call press time. There have been no solid leads in the case, authorities say.

Mass mobilization efforts by concerned residents emerged immediately to find the girls shortly after they vanished on July 6. Tracey Bradley, the girl�s mother, told police she left them home alone in her apartment at about 6 a.m., with strict instructions not to leave. The mother, who had to go to a part-time job, said the girls were gone when she returned at about 11:00 a.m. There was a note left by Tionda saying she and her sister were going to a nearby park and store.

The reward for any information leading to the girls is now $22,500. The funds have stemmed from the FBI, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Chicago Public Schools and the management company for the building where the girls lived.

On July 20, FBI handwriting experts in Washington concluded that the note found in the Bradley apartment may have been written by Tionda. The mother had said such a note was out of character for the 10-year-old girl.

Community leaders say the girls� mother and a man believed to be one of the girl�s father, were questioned by law enforcement for more than 20 hours each. The parents were insulted that they were detained so long and treated as if they were the alleged culprits, community activists say.

According to Ben Ermini, director of the Missing Children�s Division of NCMEC, the Bradley sisters were classified in their database under the Lost/ Injured/Otherwise Missing category.

One out of every six children entered into the Center�s data base have been located, he said. There are currently 70 cases of missing Black children nationwide that have been classified by the Center as non-family abductions and Lost/Injured/Otherwise Missing, that are similar to the case of the two little girls, he said. There are also many Black children listed under the database�s Run-away, and Family Abduction categories that echo the vanishing of the Bradley sisters, he added.

Since 1984, the NCMEC has reported 6,700 cases of missing Black children. Last year, there were 1,159 cases of missing Black children reported to the Center�the highest number of cases involving Black children in the Center�s 17-year history. This year, 569 cases of missing Black children have been reported, including the Bradley sisters, Mr. Ermini said.

"I don�t know if we can attribute that to the number of incidents or the number of people reporting missing children to our data base," Mr. Ermini told The Final Call.

As of June 30, 2001, the Center�s resolution rate jumped to 93.6 percent. That can be attributed to technology, he said. The Center�s age progression technique has also been attributed to the recovery of the youth.

Some of the cases of missing Black children reported to the Center that have received national attention are: Jeanine Barnwell who was reported missing in 1985 in Philadelphia, Pa.; Christopher Dansby, reported missing in 1989 in New York City; Andre Bryant, reported missing in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1989; and Shane Walker, reported missing in 1989 in New York City.

NCMEC officials say all of these cases have gone unsolved and that the clues leading to the recovery of these youth are just as vague as those leading to the Bradley sisters.

Black community activist Bamani Obadele has helped to lead prayer vigils in Chicago for the Bradley sisters and has now joined with other concerned individuals in fasting, passing out fliers and area searches.

Although the numbers of prayer vigil attendees and volunteers have begun to shrink over the 17 days that the girls have been missing, Rev. Obadele said the community and family have been grateful for the national attention and support given to the case by America�s Most Wanted television program and by men and women of the Nation of Islam.

Most recently, a group from a predominately white church came from Orlando, Fla., to participate in the prayer vigil.

"We are praying and believing that the children will be brought back. At times it�s been jubilant and emotional for some and for others it�s been frustrating. It�s unfortunate that the local media has been critical of the mother, which has shifted the focus off of the children. Although the police are still investigating and there have been no new leads, I hope they keep the same amount of manpower involved, continue the search and don�t give up," Rev. Obadele said.

"All of us who are parents can imagine the horror of a mother losing two of her children. ...This seems to be an increasing pattern that many of our children are coming up missing. This is why the resurrection of our people is so important and we must not lose time and be slow in waking up our people to their responsibility as men and women to guard and protect our women and our children," said the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, during a July 22 address at Mosque Maryam in Chicago. He urged members of the Nation of Islam to work harder at uplifting the Black community and helping to resolve crises that arise.

"The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan is deeply concerned about these young babies," Mosque Maryam Asst. Min. Ishmael Muhammad told The Final Call, as he dispatched Nation of Islam members to the prayer site in a demonstration of support. "We pray that our efforts will help to recover these beautiful children alive. However, we must stress the importance of monitoring our own neighborhoods, keeping them safe for ourselves, and we must teach our people�men and women�the value of life, the value of our children and the value of our communities. All of this starts with a proper understanding of ourselves and our God," he said.

According to Terri Solomon, executive director of the African American Family Commission (AAFC), the entire Black community has been deeply affected by the disappearance of the Bradley sisters. However, the community has always valued its children and that is evident in the community�s involvement in the search process, prayer vigils and general support.

"African American children belong to the community, not just the family," Ms. Solomon said.

In response to the numbers of children being abused and neglected, the AAFC developed the Child Watch program, a measure created to strengthen Black families by promoting total family and community involvement in child safety.

"When children are being harmed, someone in the community knows. We must intervene before they are hurt by continuing to watch out for their safety and well-being. We can�t be afraid to get involved, and when children�s lives are being threatened someone needs to know. Our children are out playing every day and walking to and from school and church and they need to know that the Black community loves and protects them," Ms. Solomon said.

Ralph McNabb, president of the Windy City Area chapter of the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice (NABCJ), said that law enforcement has responded properly to the Bradley girls� disappearance, but the Center�s statistics on Black missing children are alarming and that communities need to respond in a manner to decrease these incidences.

"The community can respond by developing safeguards they can follow for the safekeeping of their youth. The community should also become involved in the community policing endeavor to make our communities as safe as possible.

"Some solutions that we can give the Black community regarding safety when it comes to youth are: always know where your children are; never leave children home alone; get involved in community activity; know who your youth are involved with; teach youth to stay away from strangers; develop a buddy system to watch youth when needed and stay involved in religious activities," Mr. McNabb said.

Photo: The community rallied around Tracey Bradley in efforts to find her daughters Tionda, top left, and Diamond, top right.