Katora

Mayor's Office to Prevent Gun Violence


Katora

Al Tabar
Dayjah
Destiny J
Destiny M
Gregory
Justin
Katora
Kiana
Kiara
Kyesha
Melanie
Sha-Anne
Shawniqua

Al Tabar

Dayjah

Destiny J

Destiny M

Gregory

Justin

Katora

Kiana

Kiara

Kyesha

Melanie

Sha-Anne

Shawniqua


"If you’re surrounding yourself with people moving in a bad direction you need to find other people."

My father was killed by gun violence before I was born. It’s also the reason my brother is serving time. I initially walked into the Peer Leadership Committee with a chip on my shoulder. An adult in my life knew I was heading down the wrong path and connected me with the group. I’ve now been a part of the PLC for almost 6 years. I do this because I want to help others who feel the way I did. To reach kids, you just need to keep giving them positive messages over and over until it influences their behavior. Our hope is we can stop them from even considering a life of gun violence. My message – think of your future. Think of who you could become. I was tempted to take the road to trouble, but I didn’t. Now I’ve almost finished college, where I’m studying social work. The key? People. If you’re surrounding yourself with people moving in a bad direction you need to find other people. If you’re hurting and in need of direction ­– listen to what other positive people around you have to say. The PLC has given me the confidence to speak up about how I feel. I hope others will learn to let us help them too.