US activists, parents look for youth violence solutions
A 14-year-old is in the hospital after being shot outside his South Memphis home in the US.
Police said someone in a black In¿niti opened ¿re on Ragan. Family said Marrio Glover was in his driveway when he was shot in the arm, according to wreg.com.
He was taken to the hospital while police searched for the shooter.
Hours later, of¿cers said more children were connected to crime.
Two teens reportedly carjacked a man at gunpoint as he was turning into a gas station on South Perkins and Cottonwood.
Too many teens were involved in violence in the region within the past week.
Last Monday, police said 15-year-old Lorenzo Mays and his classmates were held at gunpoint and robbed on the way to the bus stop in Parkway Village. The crooks shot Mays before getting away.
Also this week, another teen was allegedly shot in the leg walking home from school in North Memphis.
“We need to deal with solutions, and how we can get these kids out of this hell that they are in,” said activist Stevie Moore with Freedom From Unnecessary Negatives.
Moore spent the day in neighborhoods talking about youth violence and discussing solutions like mentoring and encouraging people to not be afraid to speak up.
“It’s us. That’s what has gone wrong. It’s not the children. Until we accept it’s us, nothing will change,” he said.
“All we do is cry when it happens, but we won’t saying nothing before it happens.” The teens parents said they hope for change too. “You don’t know how it affected me and my family and everybody else,” said May’s mother Johnell Grover.