While gun ownership in the UK is perhaps more tightly controlled than in any other European country, with gun crime constituting less than 1% of total crime, it is a fact that guns and incidents involving firearms are a quotidian feature of modern city life. So much so that out of the almost 11,000 firearms offences committed each year in England and Wales, most are not even reported in the media.
In London there is a shooting once a day; there are on average two and a half fatal woundings each month. Figures are higher up north. In Manchester two and a half offences occur each day; most of those are committed by young men between the ages of 15 and 20.
The latest victim of UK gun crime, in Manchester’s Moss Side district — dubbed ‘the British Bronx’ — was not gang-connected, according to detectives. He was a nice kid, a softly spoken 15 year old, his mother’s “precious baby”, who often helped his pastor at the local Seventh Day Adventist Church.
He stopped 3 bullets from a semi-automatic weapon. Police said yesterday they believe the killing was a case of mistaken identity.
Last night his mother spelt out his name in candles on the patio of the house where he lived.
His name was Jesse James.
Filed under: Crime, general, law & order | Tagged: Gun Crime
What Happend to Jessie James, was a Horrid thing to do. i hope that the person who done this to him needs locking up and throw away the key. Jessie is a nice 15-year-old kid with a bright future ahead of him, he was working for his G.C.S.E so he can have a better live for his family and friends. Now he cant beacuse some thug took his life away with three bullets to his body. God wants everyone to have a better live and stop the war and gun crime in manchester, London and Birmingham!
Please Please give up your game and don’t put your family in Shame.
Thank you Shanella.
I can tell that you’re probably closer to this thing than people like me who have the time and ability to comment on it.
Ultimately though, it’s about giving youth reasons not to kill.
You stay tough, girl, get yourself a good education and then maybe, just maybe, you can stop this.
Also, I’m sorry I spelled his name wrongly.
His name is Jessie and it’s one we should never forget.
I am a Connexions Personal Adviser working in South London and I come into contact with young people everyday.
In light of the recent shootings in the Black community involving young people, i feel that it is now time for us to offer practicals ways to tackle the problems and move forward.
I believe that everyone in our community should be coming together now. I think that they need to be shown that they can overcome all things, with only a little determination, confidence in oneself and nurturing from family, school.
I am pleased to share with you a web site that promotes this and will be of interest to everyone in our community, http://www.school-info4u.com
A particular demand exists for a web site that delivers clear and specific advice to parents and carers who are raising African-Caribbean children.
School-info4u.com has the leverage to make a difference.
This free resource aims to tackle many of the problems that are causing these young people to ‘go off track’. This might be in relation to various issues, ranging from school exclusion, gang culture etc.
I guess most people might find it deeply uncomfortable talking about what’s really going on with the state of our youth. But as long as we choose complacency over awareness, we can’t change the status quo. In fact, the problems will likely grow in magnitude until people are finally forced to open their eyes and deal with the consequences. As is the case now!
The sooner each one of us decides that we do want to know, and that we are willing to invite others to open their eyes too, the more easily we will be able to turn this situation around. I guess that this won’t happen overnight, but i remain optimism…a flicker of hope in these difficult times!
For me it’s all about trying to do my little bit to try and transform our community…’ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach’.
I believe that any small thing that one person can do to help another will make all the difference and I feel as though I am doing this with the School-info4u.com project.
Take a look at http://www.school-info4u.com
Kindest regards
Ms Vaughan
Guns arnt the issue. Up in Glasgow they stab each other. There is something really wrong with these kids, something really wrong with the communities they are growing up in.
I think that the young killing today in society is getting out of hand and the government is not getting involved in tackling this issue. us black people need to work together and empower the youths today on how important it is to achieve your education and to stay motivated so that you as a person can achieve the best in society.
[...] London) increased by 148 per cent last year."n GUN CRIME UP BY 150% – News – Mirror.co.ukn Gun crime in the UKnn 11 09 2006 n While gun ownership in the UK is perhaps more tightly controlled than in any [...]
you dont know what its like to live on these streets, and its getting worse because each generation elieves they have to impress there previous, they get worse until the government has to do something. its this simple, i have lived here and seen it, it gets worse and worse but the police keep it in certain areas and its brushed under the carpet, when the news begins to realise whats happening, the police then decide to crack down on these areas, but it will never go away, this is a way of life and a stain in the uk that will never be removed. i would ask for help, but i know kids that carry guns for there olders and are automatically “known” and are “Targets” i have family all over manchester and travelling to and from is dangerous, even being seen with the wrong person can get you killed here. its a life we live with as young people in urban areas.
manchester is getting worse on gun crime….with jessie james he didnt desurve for that to happen to him…..all of us needa put da guns down!!!