Taking the pledge — students sign promise to reject gun violence

ORANGEBURG, SC (WOLO) — By signing a simple pledge, students are taking part in a national movement to reject gun violence.

It’s known as the Day of National Concern.

Middle and high school students are given age-appropriate pledges to sign and keep with them as gentle reminders.

Younger students can also take the pledge — like 3rd and 4th graders Jace Denny and Rakeem Johnson.

“Don’t use guns because guns are bad for you. And it will kill you and its dangerous,” says Rakeem.   “Never use guns cause you can go to jail for hurting somebody– really bad,” says Jace.

Michelle Green says she lost her sons Isaac and Carlton to gun violence. “Nine years, three months, and 11 days apart. And I never thought it would happen again. And when it did I think that’s what put me into a tailspin. It actually put me into a tailspin,” she says.

Green found comfort in the group “Voices of Black Mothers United” who helped her create her own nonprofit with a purpose called “Reclaiming Our Youth Services.”

“And that’s why I push so hard to get it done as many ways as I can, because I don’t want the children to lose their lives. My sons were 21 and 22, so they didn’t get to just live a full life, and they left a mom that was broken,” says Green.

Her nonprofit helped lead Wednesday’s pledge events in at William J. Clark Middle School, Refocus Academy, and The Star Center.

Joining Green was Brian Howard who says he murdered someone at the age of seventeen.

“Being that young, I didn’t know how to process things and emotions, so heading out in the wrong direction. Hanging out with the wrong people. Started making bad choices in school, stopped going to school, failing in school, eventually started picking up the gun,” he says.

Now 54-years-old, Howard was released 10 years ago, serving 28 years in prison. He makes it his goal to stop any child from going down a similar path.

“If you know a child heading in that direction, say something. Right? If you can’t say nothing to that child, get someone else to say something to that child. It’s on us to stop gun violence. We can’t wait on politicians to make legislative laws to do that, we have to do it as a community,” he says.

Since 1996 more than 10 million students have signed the pledge. You can find the pledge to download and sign here.