‘Call to action' in north O

Community leaders sent a united message Saturday to their north Omaha neighbors: “We've got to stop the violence.”

It was part of a father-and-youth summit sponsored by local group Pfrontline Inc. at North High School.

“This is a call to action,” said Willie Hamilton, president of Black Men United. “We've always planned on doing this, but the stakes have been upped'' with recent violence in the community.

Seven people were wounded in five north Omaha shootings in an eight-hour period Wednesday.

Hamilton, one of several speakers at the event, told the crowd of about 30 that teaching youngsters right from wrong starts with parents.

“If you are a father, take care of your children,” he said. “Teach them respect. It has to be done by the parents.”

Hamilton said it's also time for community members to step up and build relationships with youths. He hopes to ease relations between north Omahans and police so that more people come forward when they witness crimes.

“It's not just talk,” Hamilton said. “We need to get out there and act. It's about intervention and prevention. People need to see that there are folks stepping up to make a difference.”

Hamilton said his organization plans to help by showing teenagers and young children “that education is cool.”

He said his group will soon launch a “Real Men Read” program in which adult men read to children and act as mentors for them.

“These kids need role models,” Hamilton said. “We need to engage them and show them that reading is cool.”

The event, which featured poetry and prayer, also focused on how to reduce dropout rates, teen pregnancy, imprisonment and sexually transmitted diseases. Other speakers included Ronald Smith of Release Ministries and Terry Muhammad of the Muhammad Study Group.

Renea Wright, a mother of five, showed up to support what Hamilton and others are trying to do.

In July 2008, her 16-year-old daughter Renesha Wright was shot in the arm and back after leaving a party near 44th Street and Redman Avenue.

“There needs to be some change right now somehow,” Renea Wright said. “There are a lot of missing parents and young men that need their fathers. There needs to be more support groups and safe places for teenagers to go.”

Renesha Wright, who has made a full recovery, said she was “in the wrong place at the wrong time” when she was shot. “The shootings are out of control.Teens need to quit the violence. It's time to stop,” she said.

Contact the writer:

444-1336, leia.mendoza@owh.com

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