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.
—————————————
Stevie Danielle Bates
Case Type: Involuntary
Date of Birth: Dec 29, 1992
Missing Date: April 28, 2012
Age Now: 20
Missing City: Yonkers
Missing State: N.Y.
Case Number: 12-45085
Gender: Female
Race: Black
Complexion: Light
Height: 5’6″
Weight: 115
Hair Color: Blonde
Hair Length: Shoulder Length
Eye Color: Brown
Wear Glasses or Contacts: No
Location Last Seen: Leaving N.Y.C. Port Authority 8th Ave. between 41st and 42nd street.
Circumstances of Disappearance: According to Bates’ mother, Vivian Jones, her daughter was returning from a cross country bus trip to New York City from Hot Springs, Ark., on April 26, 2012. Bates is a Bronx High School of Science Graduate, a National Achievement Scholar, and a student of CUNY Hunter College. Jones says she spoke with her daughter on April 27th at about 7:52 p.m. while the bus was on a layover stop in Pennsylvania.
Later, Jones was able to view video that showed Bates on the escalator at New York City’s Port Authority bus terminal at about 8:15 a.m. on April 28th. Bates was later spotted walking south on 8th Avenue. Jones said her daughter told her that she planned to stop in Brooklyn to visit a friend before returning home.
Bates has not been seen or heard from since.
There’s been no activity on Bates’ Facebook page or credit cards since April 26, 2012. And Bates may not have ever made it to see her friend in Brooklyn. The friend claims that he last saw Bates before her cross country trip.
“Stevie never goes without calling me,” said Jones.
Not knowing what happened to her daughter is torture, says her mother.
“All kinds of thoughts go through your head,” she told WPIX 11.
“It’s those times when you get alone that it’s hard to breathe, because I don’t know where to look,” she added.
Bates was scheduled to move in to her parents’ Yonkers home; she had, had her boxes delivered there. More than a year later, those boxes remain unopened because Jones can’t muster up the energy to sort through her daughter’s belongings.
“We have to set up her room so it will be ready for her when she comes home,” said Jones who refuses to give up hope.
Last Seen Wearing: Dark skinny pants; three-quarters length navy blue spring maintenance jacket with the name “Mike” sewn on it; flat-deck-like sneaker, possibly black and white; and a small pocketbook with a long string strap worn over her shoulder across the chest.
Identifying Marks or Characteristics: Bates has a distinct look, with blond shoulder-length dreadlocks. She has two ear piercings in each ear, a nose piercing with small stone in her left nostril, a tongue piercing with a round gold ball tongue ring, and a belly piercing with a 2-inch-long chain belly ring.
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Stevie Danielle Bates should contact the Black and Missing Foundation’s confidential Tip Line or New York City or Yonkers Police. The family is offering a cash reward for information that leads to finding Bates.
