Former NFL star gives a powerful response when asked how to reduce violence in the black community

Former NFL running back Reggie Bush gave a stunningly powerful and candid response when asked what could be done to reduce the violence in the black community.

"This is such a deep question," he replied, "and honestly, I'm so thankful that Fox would take this leap of faith to even allow us to talk about this because the only way I feel like things can change is if we have conversations like this with a platform like this.

"But I will speak to my personal upbringing," Bush explained. "My real dad was not in my life growing up.

"And so the foundation of why I wanted to be so great on the football field was I wanted to make my dad jealous," he added. "And I had this resentment and this aggression that I grew up with toward my real dad. And as I got older I realized my dad never had his dad in his life.

"My dad met his dad for the first time five years ago," he continued. "My dad is 53 years old. And my biological grandfather, who I still haven't met to this day, lived in L.A. this whole time.

"So to me, we've got to get back to the foundation at home with the parenting," Bush said. "And a lot of my boys who I grew up with didn't have their dads. A lot of guys I knew in the NFL didn't have their dads growing up.

"I learned from a lot of the men through football," he continued. "Football ultimately became that father for me because that is where other men there. Now the issue with that is I'm learning from other men who are just as broken as me.

"I think a good start is getting back to the foundation of where kids are young and making them understand that listen, just because you have a tough upbringing doesn't mean you can't go on to be successful," Bush said.

"And I think if you start there with the parenting because not having a man in your life to show you how to be a man, that has significant effects," he concluded. "A lot of those effects have stuck with me up until my relationship with my kids and my wife."

Here's the video of Bush's powerful response: