Young leaders from the Amani Youth Council are speaking up against gun violence.
Myking Westmooreland, 14, said his brother was shot.
“My brother survived it but went through depression, and I watched my nieces and nephews go through things,” he said.
Westmooreland, who has served on the Amani Youth Council for two years, said he has noticed his peers resort to violence because of lack of attention at home.
“They get scared to a point where they feel a need to carry a firearm at all times,” he said.
He said being a part of the council helped him see the issues of youths differently.
The Amani Youth Council planned to lead a march July 30 to honor the deaths of former council member Mekaila Baskerville, Milwaukee Police Officer Kendall Corder and other victims of gun violence.
The march was postponed because of rain.
Stepping outside the box to advocate
Brooklynn Lumpkins, 15, is new to the Amani Youth Council and planned to speak during the march.
“I have stage fright, but for the march I prepared a long speech on gun violence solutions,” Lumpkins said.
Lumpkins witnessed a 20-year-old getting shot in front of her and said it upset her.
Lumpkins advocates for creating new programs and finding ways to acquire more resources for troubled youth.s
“I think this is effective because youth only do bad and unsafe things when they have too much time on their hands,” Lumpkins said.
Violence in Milwaukee
According to data from the Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission, nearly 13% of shooting victims this year were 17 and younger. Nearly 17% of shooting suspects were also minors.
The Milwaukee Police Department reported four homicides and 23 nonfatal shootings in the Amani neighborhood in 2024. This year through July 31, two homicides and 17 nonfatal shootings occurred in Amani.
Founded by former president Soleil Harvey in 2020, the youth council aims to bring peace in the Amani neighborhood through civic engagement, service and advocacy.
“Gun violence has gotten worse and people don’t understand it until it’s them,” Harvey said.
Harvey described 2019 and 2020 as rough years as children stole cars in the neighborhood; two of her brothers were shot; and the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor outraged communities.
“We thought if we started something productive for the youth, then there would be a shift,” Harvey said.
Harvey said there are children who do great things for the community, especially the council.
“Everybody acts scared of us (youth), but what happened to the village?” Harvey said.
‘We already know what the issue is’
Elizabeth Brown, president of Amani United and Harvey’s mother, said her generation avoids youths when things become challenging.
“My peers tend to forget who raised the kids. They can’t be afraid to speak to the youth they raised,” Brown said.
Brown believes the main focus should be mental wellness and healing.
“Milwaukee leaders need to wake up because we don’t need continuous meetings and town halls just to discuss the same things over again. We already know what the issue is,” Brown said.
A hope for change
Lumpkins said that a safe community should include trust and reassurance from its residents.
Meanwhile, Westmooreland wants adults to start growing more confident in going places.
“We just have to have faith that we will have another day,” he said.
A call for action
Brown said the rescheduled Youth March Against Gun Violence will be from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 13, starting at North 24th Street and West Garfield Avenue.
Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.
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