Leonardo Williams is joining forces with Mark-Anthony
Middleton in a challenge for Black men to help curb gun violence in
Durham.
It’s been a year since Williams and Middleton co-founded
OneKMB (One Thousand Black Men). Both are busy campaigning for Durham’s city
council. Middleton is the incumbent in Ward 2. Williams is running against A.J.
Williams to replace Pierce Freelon as the Ward 3 representative.
Williams and Middleton are pausing their campaigns because they’ve
seen too much to wait.
“Public safety is not a binary issue with one answer. It’s
ensuring that we can live and prosper without fear of losing lives,” Williams
wrote in a statement released to the press. “I have a son, I hire young men, I’m
a Black man; so, it’s personal for me. I’m committed to hiring, mentoring, and
growing young men of color, yet I’m in direct competition with forces that do
not have our best interest at heart. I refuse to sit idly and watch another
young man’s life end senselessly.
Omar Beasley, past president of the Durham Committee on the
Affairs of Black People, John Rooks, Jr., former candidate for Durham city
council, and Antonio Jones, president of the Durham Committee on the Affairs of
Black People, are also co-founders of OneKBM.
Middleton says Covid-19 would not allow the group to meet
and organize like they needed to last year. OneKMB plans to generate and
facilitate resources for mentoring groups, organization, and economic ecosystems
throughout Durham. They are challenging local governments and concerned
citizens to devise an action plan to address gun violence.
“This call for 1000 Black Men to assemble is not meant to
excuse nor exempt the government from its responsibilities; it is rather meant
to augment and complement the efforts to literally preserve Durham’s future,”
Middleton said. “We do not need permission to save our own lives.”
The press release notes recent police data that has Durham
on pace to surpass 2016 as the deadliest year on record.
“To counter the uptick in gun violence, Black men of
several organization and ministries are asked to join a mass action movement in
order to keep our communities accountable and change the trajectory of young men
of color who are committing crimes and are the victims of crime, enhance their
engagement in the community, and provide access to stable jobs and workforce
development,” the OneKBM press release states. On Friday, OneKBM will begin a
movement that will directly impact how Black men are involved in Durham’s
public safety.”
Black men are asked to meet on Friday, September 24, at
noon on the steps of the Hayti Heritage Center.
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