Through the power of Facebook, Antoine Coleman, Jr. finally met his father at age 15 after spending years searching for him.
Antoine was ecstatic as the pair ate dinner at a TGI Fridays in the mall and compared notes on fashion and music. They shared the same facial features and “big ears,” Altaron Robinson remembered.
Altaron was incarcerated when Antoine was born. Antoine’s mother, who lived in Allentown, was deported to Jamaica when Antoine was still young. The mother’s boyfriend and the boyfriend’s family took on the responsibility of raising Antoine in the West Oak Lane neighborhood of Philadelphia.
“It was like as if you were finding a long-lost adopted child,” recalled Antoine’s biological grandmother, Karen Robinson. Once we did connect, we didn’t have much time.”
On the night of October 18, 2017, Antoine was shot twice in the head on the 6700 block of North 16th Street in West Oak Lane. He was pronounced dead at Einstein Medical Center 40 minutes later.
Antoine, 17, was exiting a store with two of his friends when he got caught in the crossfire,” Karen said. The perpetrator was captured on surveillance video and sentenced to life in prison without parole, she continued. A mural of Antoine’s face on the store serves as a stark reminder.
“These streets are just snatching them up and taking them away,” Karen seethed. “They don’t stand a chance.”
Born on March 10, 2000 in Allentown, Antoine was well-mannered, respectful and determined to graduate Excel Academy South High School on Roosevelt Boulevard. He had recently started his senior year when he was killed. The SEPTA bus driver who drove Antoine to school each day came to his funeral and praised his good behavior compared to the other rowdy students.
“Twon,” as he was called, took no special interest in extracurricular activities. “His main activity of being in school was being popular,” Karen said.
Antoine’s uncle, George Coleman, was a particularly positive influence on his life. Gentle and soft-spoken, George urged Antoine to become a homebody lest he succumb to the violence on the streets. As a result, Antoine spent hours glued to video games or taking selfies on his iPhone — “the phone was everything for him,” Altaron said.
Despite all their years apart, Antoine was immediately interested in connecting with his father and that side of the family, Karen said. Without missing a beat, he called her “nanny” and began attending family gatherings in Easton and New Jersey.
Antoine became acquainted with his father’s seven other children. They shared the same facial expressions, comedic timing and the desire to trash-talk competing sports teams.
Antoine was quintessential Philly, defending the Eagles, educating the other children about SEPTA, and showing them dance moves like the Dougie in his New Balance sneakers. They delighted in his Philly slang, “my jawn.” He taught his youngest brother how to dribble two basketballs at the same time.
“He was the focal point,” Karen said. “Everybody always wanted to know more.”
But Antoine refused to sugarcoat the city’s surging violence. Six of his friends had been killed. After graduation, he hoped to move to Easton to be near his father and enroll in a vocational school to become a mechanic.
“Everybody else wants to play football or basketball,” Altaron said. “He was practical.”
“He was a king in the making,” Karen added. “We just didn’t have enough time to see all of those possibilities.”
Since Antoine’s death, Karen has become more involved in the anti-violence movement.
“I do it for the future Philly kids,” she said. “I’m fighting for them.”
“Who wants to be memorialized on a t-shirt? A t-shirt wears thin.”
Resources are available for people and communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Click here for more information.
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