Word in Black is a collaboration of 10 of the nation’s leading Black publishers that frames the narrative and fosters solutions for racial inequities in America.
Tuesday marks what would’ve been Davon Thomas McNeal III’s 15th birthday.
Davon, a football phenom and violence interrupter in training, became a victim of the very scourge his mother, Crystal McNeal, was working to stop. On July 4, 2020, he lost his life on the 1400 block of Cedar Street in Southeast shortly after arriving at a cookout his mother was hosting.
Crystal McNeal, joined by dozens of community members, recently converged, once again, on 1400 Cedar Street to honor Davon, for whom that street has been ceremoniously renamed Davon T. McNeal III Way.
The renaming, McNeal said, counts among her latest efforts to preserve Davon’s legacy.
“This baby did a lot. He was a good kid [just] to be taken away at the age of 11,” said McNeal, a violence interrupter and executive director of the Davon T. McNeal III Foundation (DM3), launched just one month after her son’s death.
“I do my best to stay strong and not give up. I don’t want to see mothers go through things I go through,” McNeal continued. “I tell mothers [who lost their child to violence] it’s okay to cry but don’t give up with their other children. You have to be your child’s voice to keep their name alive.”
Family and Friends Return to 1400 Cedar Street SE to Honor Davon
On Saturday, DM3, in conjunction with Ward 8 D.C. Council member Trayon White’s office and a bevy of community organizations, hosted an event in celebration of the ceremonial street renaming. Several community members, including the D.C. Guardian Angels, a group founded by Davon’s paternal grandfather John Ayala, braved cold, wet wintery conditions to take photos in front of the “Davon T. McNeal III Way” sign, reflect on Devon’s legacy, groove to the sounds of hip-hop and go-go, and, most importantly, support a call for change.
LaTravette “La” Walker, DM3’s director of operations, served as the mistress of ceremonies and the Rev. Kevin McGill, Davon’s football coach, opened the event with a prayer.
Council member White gave remarks while Wali Johnson, executive director of J&J Monitoring, a partner organization, spoke about Davon’s impact as a young, respectful athlete, telling community members that Davon now stands among the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.
Others who spoke on Saturday included Ricardo D. Miles of Driven Concepts and Solutions, Prince Hamn of Making a Difference, Tiffany Evans of Strong Ass Mothers, an advocacy group for mothers grieving from children’s deaths, and Wanda Ayala, Davon’s grandmother.
After listening to a poem recited by La’Niya “LaLa” Johnson, revelers took in the raw, soulful messages of Pinky Tha Rapper and BDR, rappers hailing from Ward 8. Reaction Band later closed out the program with their unique execution of the bounce beat that placed community members of all ages in a trance.
At times throughout the program, community members held up three fingers, in honor of Davon, a linebacker and running back who wore #3 on his jersey.
Kevon McNeal, Davon’s younger brother, counted among those who made it to the 1400 block of Cedar Street SE on Saturday. He participated in the festivities mindful of the emotions that the occasion brought.
“I miss my brother. I remember us always being together,” said Kevon, 13.
“I want people to remember that he was ‘like that’ at every sport he played — football, basketball and baseball,” Kevon continued. “This is showing me that life is bad because I lost my brother. Right now, we would be playing game[s].”
A Ceremonial Street Renaming and the Preservation of a Legacy
Per the Street and Alley Closing and Acquisition Procedures Act of 1982, people who have been deceased two years or longer are eligible for symbolic street designations with the suffixes “way” or “plaza” once the advisory neighborhood commission in which the street is located receives proper notice and the D.C. Council approves.
On May 2, 2023, the D.C. Council unanimously approved the Davon T. McNeal III Way Designation Act, introduced by D.C. Council member Trayon White (D-Ward 8). This took place less than a year after a D.C. judge sentenced Carlo General, one of four men indicted for their part in Davon’s murder, to 16 years in prison for his direct role in Davon’s death.
The passage of the Davon T. McNeal III Way Designation Act also preceded the passage of a resolution symbolically designating a Ward 7 street for the late Makiayah Wilson, who lost her life under similar circumstances in 2018.
During the legislative process, Matthew Marcou, District Department of Transportation’s chief of staff told the council’s Committee of the Whole that he, on behalf of the executive, had no objection to the ceremonial street renaming. The committee received no testimony or comments from any advisory neighborhood commission.
As McNeal recounted to community members on Saturday, Council member White called her shortly after the council approved the ceremonial street renaming while she was on a trip with the young people of DM3. She said the two of them had been in conversation for years about the endeavor.
Other than waiting for Davon’s eligibility, navigating the process—which includes collecting signatures for a petition — didn’t take much effort, McNeal told The Informer.
“Davon used to be doing the work with me,” McNeal told The Informer. “Everyone knew about him.”
Helping Parents, Children Address Trauma
At the time of his death, Davon had been playing football for more than half of his life. He garnered a reputation as a charismatic, passionate team player and natural-born leader.
Through DM3, McNeal has been able to preserve Davon’s legacy via weekly meetings at 1425 Cedar Street SE and seasonal out-of-town trips for Davon’s friends and other youths.
She has been able to take these out-of-town trips in a van donated by Pittsburgh Steelers running back Anthony McFarland, Jr. that bears pictures of Davon.
McNeal said there are currently 50 young people between the ages of 13 and 18 enrolled in DM3 who engage therapists and community organizers in discussions about school, their future plans, and other topics of interest.
Plans in the works for 2024 include a retreat in February and a spring break trip to Atlanta, McNeal said.
McNeal, who’s been working as a volunteer, and more recently a parent coordinator, at Kramer Middle School in Southeast since 2022, also has her sights set on Sousa Middle School, Anacostia High School and Ballou High School, where she said she hopes to develop programming.
These efforts, once they come to fruition, will build upon DM3’s work with One Care DC, a core service agency that provides mental health resources in two locations along Marion Barry Avenue in Southeast.
One Care DC, in existence since 2017, dispatches more than 80 community support workers to assist 2,000 D.C. residents who, in addition to mental health treatment, are seeking wraparound services.
After navigating an intake process, residents receive a diagnostic and meet with an on-site practitioner who creates a treatment plan. Throughout the course of treatment, residents see psychiatrists and therapists as often as needed. In its work with DM3, One Care DC sets out to, as CEO Donna Stevens explained, help parents develop skills to help them recognize and address the manifestations of trauma in their home life.
“A lot of D.C. residents go through trauma. They just have an inability to deal with it,” Stevens told The Informer. “If any issues come up, we teach them coping [strategies] to help them address it safely and without coming into crisis.”
On Saturday, One Care DC joined DM3, Martha’s Table, J&J Monitoring, Abstract Expressionz – Healing Through Art, Community of Hope AME Church, and Strong Ass Mothers on the 1400 block of Cedar Street in Southeast, providing families with resources intended to improve their quality of life.
Dennis Yeager, One Care DC’s outreach specialist, said that programming of this kind will continue at One Care DC’s Skyland location where parents, and eventually young people, who are affiliated with DM3 will be able to participate in thought-provoking group conversations.
“It takes a village to raise a child. We’ve kind of gotten away from that,” Yeager said. “We need to get back to that approach to help these kids in the streets and show them a better way to expound their energy,” he continued.
“When parents come home, they wonder and worry if their child will come through that door. In parent-peer groups, they will learn to grapple with those fears. It’s very important and this will be a great collaboration.”
