Generation Hope’s Statement on Morgan State University and Bowie State University Shootings
Last night, the Morgan State University (MSU) community experienced the horrific terror of gun violence on their campus when five people attending a homecoming week celebration were shot and wounded. While we are deeply grateful that Generation Hope Scholars, Alumni, and staff who are members of the MSU community did not experience this violence firsthand, we are shaken today over how close this issue has come to our families again. No student should fear for their life going to school or attending campus events; no one should know the horror of checking in on loved ones, praying they were not victims of violent attacks — and yet these are common experiences across the country.
As we serve and work alongside teen and student parents every day, we know that young people ages 15–34 are at the highest risk for dying by firearm homicide. Analysis by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions of the most recently available CDC data (2021) highlighted that young people ages 15-34 had a gun homicide rate twice the national average and accounted for three out of every five gun homicide deaths.
Student parent work and preventing gun violence are both synonymous with race equity work. We know that parenting students are disproportionately students of color who are underserved by various systems. Young Black males ages 15–34 are disproportionately impacted by gun violence; although they represented 2% of the total population in the United States, they accounted for 36% of all deaths from gun homicides in 2021. Their firearm homicide rate was 24 times higher than white males of the same age group. For young Black women ages 15-34, the firearm homicide rate was nine times as high compared to their white counterparts. We also acknowledge that MSU, a historically Black university, has experienced the impact of gun violence in its community each of the last three years.
To our MSU Scholar and Alumni families, we are here to support your mental health and your overall needs. And to young people across the nation whose lives or communities have been touched by this issue, we stand with you and demand action from policymakers at every level to address this epidemic of senseless violence. For anyone else who needs support, here are a few resources for those experiencing trauma stemming from gun violence. Our hope is that these resources support our families — and all families — in guiding their children through these difficult conversations.
Updated 10/11/2023
Within one week, gun violence has yet again impacted the Generation Hope community, now affecting our Bowie State University Scholars (BSU), Alumni, staff, and stakeholders and bringing the horror of the MSU violence to the forefront again. On Saturday evening, during a Homecoming celebration that BSU had specifically invited MSU students to participate in due to the cancellation of their own campus activities, two young men were shot and wounded. The time is now for serious action that eliminates gun violence in our communities; all young people and their families and communities nationwide have a right to a safe, healthy path to achieving their dreams. To our BSU Scholars, our programming staff is reaching out to make sure you have access to the supports that you and your families may need at this time.
