Community push for gun violence awareness after of two fatal shootings in a week
WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI) – The fatal drive-by shooting last night marks the second fatal shooting this week in Clay County.
Now, community leaders are speaking up and taking action during National Gun Violence Awareness Month.
Families and community members are mourning after two fatal shootings in the span of just three days in West Point and Clay County.
Now, there is a renewed call to action for the community ahead of National Gun Violence Awareness Day, June 5.
“We’ve got to find a better solution and talk about it,” Longstreet said. “Too often, we find ourselves in this situation where we find violence, whether it is to do with mental illness or anger management, but we’ve got to find a better solution. As a concerned pastor, minister, and citizen of the city of West Point, my heart goes out to the families of the victims who are affected by gun violence.”
Reita Humphries is no stranger to gun violence. It has hit her own family. She said it is always her mission to keep the topic in front of the community.
“My son was murdered in 2021, so that sparked my family to start doing this because something just needed to be done, and this is one way for us to give back, but also it is therapeutic not only just for us but also for others here within the community,” Humphries said.
Humphries is hosting Wear Orange weekend, a two-day event to spread awareness of and, more importantly, help prevent gun violence.
“It’s sad because the whole purpose of it is to try to prevent, and it just lets us know that our work is not done and that we have to continue fighting for this,” Humphries said. “We are inviting everyone to come out and take part because prayer does change things, and by us coming together, that is one step forward in the right direction.”
Eddie Longstreet is a longtime resident of West Point.
He said the ways people approach their problems with others has changed over the years, and in some cases, technology has magnified them.
“A lot of times we are finding that social media is playing a vital role in our violence because so many of our young people and middle aged people are exposed to social media whereas when I came along 60 years ago, we didn’t have social media and we all had our problems in but they weren’t like this,” Longstreet said.
Wear Orange Weekend will start on National Gun Violence Awareness Day Friday, June 5, with the 5th annual Prayer in the Park at Sally Kate Winters Park.
