by JR Valrey
As I was scrolling through social media a week ago, I saw a missing poster featuring a young Black woman from Fillmore named Chantel Brooks. Black people, especially Black women, go missing at alarming rates locally and around the country without the media blitzes that are given to missing dogs in the mainstream media. We cannot expect the government to put up a real search for the missing people in our community. We have to do it.
Here is an interview that I did with Hunters Point rapper Footz from Live Wire Records, talking about his sister’s case.
JR Valrey: Who is your sister, and where is she from?
Footz: My sister is Chantel Brooks. She’s 37 years old and from the Bay Area. She’s a loving person and a very important part of our family. Right now, our main focus is bringing Chantel home safely and finding answers about what happened to her. She grew up in the Fillmore neighborhood in San Francisco.
JR Valrey: When and how did you realize your sister was missing?
Footz: We realized Chantel was missing when we could no longer reach her and didn’t know where she was. She was last seen on July 17, 2026, in Fairfield, California. We became very concerned and immediately started trying to find out what had happened. A missing-person report was filed, and our family has continued searching and sharing information that might help locate her.
JR Valrey: How has this affected you?
Footz: This has been incredibly difficult for me and my family. Not knowing where Chantel is or what happened to her has been heartbreaking. Every day, we hope we’ll get answers and be able to bring her home. We’re doing everything we can to keep her name and photo in the public eye because we don’t want her case to be forgotten.
JR Valrey: What has the community response been like?
Footz: The community has been very supportive. People have shared her flyers, spread the word and helped with the search. We’re truly grateful to everyone who has supported our family. We’re asking people to stay involved because one person remembering something or seeing something could make all the difference in finding Chantel.
JR Valrey: What can people do to help?
Footz: People can help by sharing Chantel’s missing-person information and keeping her photo in circulation. If anyone was in the Fairfield area around the time she disappeared or has any information about Chantel or her whereabouts, we ask them to come forward. Even information that may seem small or unimportant could help the investigation.
Most importantly, please don’t assume someone else has already reported what you know. If you have information, please report it to law enforcement.
JR Valrey: Where can people go to get more information?
Footz: People can follow our family’s efforts to bring Chantel home through her missing-person flyers, community updates and social media. They can also contact the Fairfield Police Department with any information related to her disappearance. We’re asking everyone to continue sharing her information until she is found.
I want to thank everyone who’s offered support, hugs, prayers, money, shared the flyer or helped us get the word out in any way, because it truly takes a village and me and my family is truly grateful.
JR Valrey is Editor and Chief of the San Francisco Bay View and can be reached at JR@sfbayview.com