Through The Cracks

Relisha should be celebrating being 20 years old. This podcast and little girl has stayed with me, such a gross mishandling of her disappearance and not sounding the alarm that she was indeed missing until Tatum’s wife was found killed. It hits harder that I was a student intern at Payne ES and just 1 degree of separation from Relisha. I pray she is found and that those who still grieve her find peace in the impact she has had. Also, we need more seasons of this show!

So much time spent blaming everyone but the parents.

I just recently saw this series mentioned on socials. Decided to check it out. Thank you for such a thoughtful and thorough telling of this story. It is as much about Relisha as it is about her family and the city. You tackled it from all angles. Relisha Rudd will never be forgotten.

This is a tragic story, and for those who have compassion or empathy, or have been in the system themselves, it’s difficult to listen to the in-depth telling of this tragedy. For those reviewers who feel that the reporter should’ve pinned more blame on Relisha’s family, you seem to miss the point of this podcast and why it’s called Through the Cracks. This family has generational trauma and abuse—much of which was dealt by the child welfare system. When you are raised in an environment where all you know is abandonment, neglect, abuse, and family separation you often come into adulthood lacking certain intuition and traits that those of us who were not raised in those conditions and circumstances take for granted. So yes, when you come from a place of privilege and stability the actions of Relisha’s family when she went missing seem like they lack care and concern instead of the learned ability to respond and react in the typical manner.