Thread by @KristaJ1993, Before the Class of 2020 finished their high school careers, 19 peers [...]

Before the Class of 2020 finished their high school careers, 19 peers 18 or younger were killed.

Here is a thread about how this violence impacts Montgomery’s youth:

(1/12) https://bit.ly/33pUMG0

Too young to die: Violence is traumatizing a generation of Montgomery's youth

Before the Class of 2020 graduated, 19 peers 18 or younger were killed. Violence and death as a result have become commonplace for Montgomery’s youth.

https://bit.ly/33pUMG0

“When a soldier returns home, they’re not in that battlefield. These kids, we send them back to that battlefield every day."

Photos and awesome videos by the @jakevcrandall

(2/12)

“Imagine how it felt listening to my son, at 7 years old, explain how he is going to end his life so he could go be with his big brother. Imagine how that feels for me. This is because of what this person has done.” https://bit.ly/33qb5Ti

Gun violence: Montgomery families struggle with the loss of loved ones

Schools and communities have created programs to help grieving students, but losing a loved one to violence has a lasting emotional effect on families.

https://bit.ly/33qb5Ti

One month into her senior year, Helen Brown’s boyfriend was shot to death in a McDonald’s parking lot. In such a short life, she's experienced a kind of ongoing trauma that few adults can imagine.

(4/12) https://bit.ly/3i5aeLT

Her boyfriend's killing was tragic and confusing. Graduating was her tribute to him.

Ty'Riq Moon was going to be there when Helen Brown graduated. Five days before his 21st birthday, he was fatally shot one month into her senior year.

https://bit.ly/3i5aeLT

Here are the names and faces of the 19 who died too early:

(5/12) https://bit.ly/2XrSdQ7

Violence took the lives of these Montgomery children. Here's how they're being remembered.

When the Class of 2020 finished high school, 19 of their peers 18 or younger died violently in Montgomery. These are their stories.

https://bit.ly/2XrSdQ7

In addition to the loss of classmates, many of the community’s young people have lost parents, siblings, aunts and uncles and cousins and neighbors who were gunned down. https://bit.ly/33pxX5B

Too young to die in Montgomery

Before the Class of 2020 finished their high school careers, 19 peers 18 or younger died violent deaths.

https://bit.ly/33pxX5B

And this is why, when we talk about education, this story is so important:

(7/12) https://bit.ly/2PnB9q2

Opinion: We can't talk about student achievement without acknowledging the environment our kids...

Before the Class of 2020 finished high school 19 peers aged 18 or under lost their lives violently. Here's how Krista Johnson reported their stories.

https://bit.ly/2PnB9q2

For this project, the @MGMAdvertiser partnered with @ArtByKevinKing, who called on local artists to illustrate the impact violence has on communities. https://bit.ly/2PjAoOO

Too young to die: King's Canvas helps to create artwork inspired by community violence

Artists captured their feelings about community violence in illustrations of stray bullets, unattainable wishes and the media portrayal of lost lives.

https://bit.ly/2PjAoOO

We also asked local leaders to write about it from their perspectives.

(9/12) https://bit.ly/2PjRo7s

Montgomery Police Chief Ernest Finley: 'We have to break that cycle of violence'

"...we need the support of our entire community to take a proactive approach in addressing our gun violence issues," Police Chief Ernest Finely said.

https://bit.ly/2PjRo7s

(10/12) https://bit.ly/39Ryw9s

'All hope is not lost': Valiant Cross founder Anthony Brock on community violence

"We have lost too many of our neighborhoods' most valuable resources," Brock writes about the shooting deaths in Montgomery.

https://bit.ly/39Ryw9s

(11/12) https://bit.ly/3i7sBQp

Jannah Bailey on community violence: 'We can make this our issue, not theirs'

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world, Bailey writes. What didn't change is the traumatic events Montgomery children are experiencing, she said.

https://bit.ly/3i7sBQp

Of the 19 killings, four remain unsolved. https://bit.ly/31lRUHA

Too young to die: Where the cases of Montgomery's recent child homicides are now

By the time the Class of 2020 finished their high school careers, 19 of their peers had died violently. Here is where each of their cases stand.

https://bit.ly/31lRUHA

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