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Although African Americans make up just 13 percent of the U.S. population, we account for 33 percent of the missing in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s database. Cases involving African Americans also tend to receive less media coverage than missing Whites, with missing men of color getting even less attention.

NewsOne has partnered with the Black and Missing Foundation and TV One to focus on the crisis of missing African Americans.

To be a part of the solution, NewsOne will profile a missing person weekly and provide tips about how to keep your loved ones safe and what to do if someone goes missing, while TV One‘s newest show, “Find Our Missing,” hosted by award-winning actress S. Epatha Merkerson, tells these stories in visual form.

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Leah Jackson

Case Type: Endangered

Date of Birth: January 1, 1997

Missing Date: July 28, 2012

Age Now: 15

Missing City: New Haven

Missing State: Connecticut

Gender: Female

Race: Black

Complexion: Light

Height: 5’0″

Weight: 105

Hair Color: Brown

Hair Length: Medium

Eye Color: Brown

Wear Glasses or Contacts: No

Location Last Seen: The night she went missing, her mother says someone picked Leah up from her house late in Fair Haven Heights.

Circumstances of Disappearance: Police believe she is a runaway. She shut down her Facebook page before she disappeared. Her family suspects she might be with a Hispanic male in his early 20s named “Johnny.”

Leah’s mom is asking the public for help in finding her daughter.

“The more information I obtain and give to police, the less work they have to do,” Jackson’s mother, Shari Muhammad, told the New Haven Register. “Is she okay. I know nothing. She left in the middle of the night…. She would never do anything like that.”

Police say they are investigating the missing persons report. The family has been out posting fliers and canvassing the area.

“I’m just desperately trying to find my daughter,” said Muhammad.

Last Seen Wearing: A multi-colored tank-top and dark blue “skinny jeans.”

Identifying Marks or Characteristics: Leah has pink highlights in her hair.

If you have information regarding the whereabouts of Leah Jackson, contact New Haven Police at (203) 946-6304 or the Black and Missing Foundation’s confidential Tip Line