Gun violence in our schools, streets leaves children caught in crossfire

The Urban League of Broward County stands with the students, parents and faculty of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. We are saddened by the premature loss of lives and angered by the reluctance of our elected politicians to enact common-sense gun laws.

We’re also extremely proud of the students’ response to this tragedy. They have turned their anguish into the beginnings of what we hope will be a much larger and more powerful anti-gun violence movement.

Parkland, Fla., is just the latest flashpoint — leaving 14 students and three adults dead — in a long and untenable string of gun violence. Black youth, too, have been fighting for better gun regulations, long before the words Columbine, Sandy Hook and now Marjory Stoneman Douglas became synonymous with mass shootings.

The crack cocaine epidemic, gang violence, the Trayvon Martin shooting — all prompted efforts led by young black women and teens in communities across the country to address problems in their neighborhoods that had one thing in common: easy access to guns.

Unfortunately, those efforts did not generate the energy and support shown the Stoneman Douglas students. Instead, those earlier calls for gun control were demonized, obfuscated and ignored, something the victims of the Parkland shootings are beginning to experience.

Every day, according to The Brady Campaign, seven children and teenagers die from gun violence. The victims of these tragedies come from all walks of life, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions and racial and ethnic groups.

Unfortunately, the risk of gun violence still falls disproportionately on young African Americans in my community, particularly black males. Young black men between the age of 15 and 24 are killed by a gun at a rate that is 4.5 times higher than their white counterparts.

Away from the media spotlight, gun violence still plagues our streets in too many communities. A child playing in the yard is hit by a stray bullet. A boy on the playground is shot after a scuffle is settled by a gun. A student on her way to school is caught in the crossfire.

In the aftermath of the Parkland shooting, young people across America are demanding action from their elected officials. They want to live without the fear of gun violence. They are not alone.

To get the change we need, to bring about sensible gun regulations, we need to recognize the widespread devastation of gun violence and come together collectively and organize to resolve it. Now is the time for all the victims of this crisis to come together to enact sensible gun regulations that encompass every victimized community.

No matter where it occurs, gun violence should never be tolerated. Whether it happens at a school or on the streets, the loss of life and the pain that is left to surviving loved ones and the larger community is equally devastating.