Brooklyn parents tackle gun violence

Michael Tucker still grieves. So does Tracey Winn. Both have suffered tragic irreplaceable losses.
Sons torn away, gone way too soon. Clearly, violence in Brooklyn has not really abated. Official statistics, sometimes optimistic, belie the lingering pain that grip many lives in this side of town. On April 23 Trevonne Winn, 23, a native of Belmont, Trinidad, was murdered in cold blood between Nostrand Avenue and Farragut Road in Brooklyn.

His mother, Tracey, warned him that “Brooklyn can be a dangerous place,” and that he should return home to Rock Hill, South Carolina, “as soon as soon as possible.” “It has to be a case of mistaken identity,” she said, recalling that fateful day. “They gunned down my son in broad daylight as he stood outside the building where he was staying with family. He knew nobody in Brooklyn except family.” Police investigation has been stymied by little or no co-operation in a community where being labelled a “snitch” can prove tragic.

The murder caught on close circuit TV is quickly turning cold, although family members are prayerful that justice will bear down on the perpetrator. “Our lives have been turned upside down. It was also a financial burden to bring my son’s body to Rock Hill for burial,” Tracy said. She paused, cleared her voice and continued: “He had a promising future. He was in the music business you know, and was only in Brooklyn to make the right contacts. I gave him two weeks to get back here...and look at what happened.”

Increasing Awareness

In her darkest despair, Tracey turned to Michael Tucker. Their stories reek with heartache, yearning, and scattered dreams. Tucker’s son, though, was killed by police officers. “A bullet to the back of the head,” he remembered. The circumstances are still sketchy. “He was wanted for questioning, but wasn’t armed.” But if Tucker is bitter, it is hardly transparent. In fact, he swore that he wasn’t angry—against the police or the judicial system.

“I have channelled everything to my advocacy group, Lay the Guns Down Campaign,” he admitted.
“It’s all about increasing awareness and ending this epidemic that is destroying families.”
Tucker is consumed by this initiative. It’s his therapy, his way of quieting the haunting incident that took place nine years ago. “Violence has not stopped,” he suggested. This, he attributed to poverty amid a culture of mass consumerism.

“You know I think it’s the incredible peer pressure that kids are living with these days. Kids are made to feel left out.. outsiders. When this happens, some do terrible things just to get something they are expected to have.” Some Sociologists will concur with such rationalisations. But it does little to explain how his, or Tracey’s son succumbed. Inexplicable or not, a meaningful response to the madness has emerged.

Fighting Back
Parents are fighting back hard, spearheaded by Michael Tucker. Partnerships are being formed. Awareness raised. “I have collaborated with key players. The aim is to highlight that deadly violence in our community is still very real and we must better harness and redirect our children's energies,” Michael said.

He has formed alliances with Teen News Net and Black Noise Media—both geared at chanelling the creative and artistic talents of inner city kids. He is also working in tandem with in another organisation, SISFI, to address cyber bullying and other forms of social and psychological violence. In a strategic move that has paid dividends, Michael has availed himself of influential politicians and New York athletes (NY Giants' Justin Tuck and Dominque Hickson) in his advocacy.

“Oh yes, they are on board, giving their time to do 30 seconds commercials against gun violence,” he nodded. “The kids are also responding positively. It’s hard but our work is making a difference,” he ends.
In pain, there is redemption.