When people ask me why June, Gun Violence Awareness Month, is so important to me, my answer is simple:
Because I lived it. I still live it. It’s my everyday reality.
But the truth is, it isn’t just June that matters. While June serves as a time for communities across the country to bring attention to gun violence, I believe this is an issue that deserves our attention every single day of the year.
Gun violence doesn’t take a month off. The families impacted by it don’t get a break. The trauma doesn’t disappear when June ends. The pain, grief, fear, and loss remain long after the awareness campaigns are over.
For me, gun violence is not a statistic or a headline. It’s personal.
Since childhood, I have witnessed the devastating effects of gun violence firsthand. I watched my older brother survive being shot three times because of gang violence. I witnessed my best friend lose his life in front of his own home. Over the years, I have lost numerous friends, family members, and community members to senseless acts of violence.
Each loss leaves a mark. Each life taken leaves behind a family forced to carry unimaginable pain.
Those experiences shaped who I am today and ultimately led me to dedicate my life to helping prevent others from experiencing the same tragedies.
June Is Gun Violence Awareness Month
Gun Violence Awareness Month is a time to honor victims, support survivors, and bring attention to an issue that continues to impact communities across the nation.
It’s an opportunity to have difficult conversations, educate others, and encourage communities to become part of the solution.
But awareness alone is not enough.
Awareness must lead to action. Action must lead to change.
If we truly want safer communities, we must commit ourselves to the work long after June has passed.
Turning Pain Into Purpose
My personal experiences with gun violence could have left me bitter, angry, or hopeless. Instead, they gave me purpose.
Today, I serve as the Assistant Director for Family & Children’s Association’s Hempstead SNUG and MPower programs. Every day, I work alongside a team of dedicated professionals who are committed to interrupting cycles of violence, mentoring young people, supporting families, and creating opportunities for healing and growth.
Through our work, we engage individuals who are often considered the highest risk for becoming involved in violence. We build relationships, provide resources, mediate conflicts, connect people to services, and offer hope where hope sometimes feels absent.
Many people only see the violence after it happens. Our job is to prevent it before it happens.
That work is challenging, but it is also deeply rewarding.
My “Why”
People often ask why I continue doing this work.
The answer is simple.
I do it for the people I lost.
I do it for the families who are grieving today.
I do it for the young people who need someone to believe in them before the streets convince them otherwise.
I do it because I know what gun violence can take away from a family, a neighborhood, and an entire community.
Most importantly, I do it because I believe people can change.
I have seen young people choose a different path. I have seen former rivals become friends. I have seen individuals overcome trauma and become leaders in their communities.
Those stories remind me that prevention works.
Gun violence is often viewed as someone else’s problem.
It isn’t.
It affects all of us.
Whether directly or indirectly, gun violence impacts our schools, our parks, our businesses, our neighborhoods, and our sense of safety.
The solution cannot rest solely on law enforcement, community organizations, or violence prevention programs.
It requires all of us.
Parents, educators, faith leaders, business owners, community members, and young people all have a role to play. Every conversation matters. Every act of mentorship matters. Every effort to support a struggling young person matters.
Building safer communities is a shared responsibility.
A Call to Action
One message I hope people take away this month is this:
Gun violence is not just my problem. It’s not just the problem of those who have lost loved ones. It’s not just the responsibility of violence prevention workers.
It’s all our problem.
And because it belongs to all of us, the solution belongs to all of us as well.
We cannot afford to be bystanders. We must become active participants in creating safer communities.
Attend community events. Mentor a young person. Support local organizations. Check on your neighbors. Speak up when conflicts arise. Invest your time in making your community stronger.
Small actions, when multiplied across an entire community, can create meaningful change.
I leave you with this closing thought…
The fight against gun violence will not be won overnight.
But I have learned that change often begins with small, consistent steps.
One conversation CAN change a life.
One mentor CAN alter a young person’s future.
One act of compassion CAN interrupt a cycle of violence.
June reminds us to raise our voices, honor those we’ve lost, and recommit ourselves to the work ahead.
For me, that commitment doesn’t end when the month does.
Because gun violence isn’t just something I’ve witnessed.
It’s something I’ve survived.
And it’s something I will continue fighting to prevent—one life, one family, and one community at a time.
By Matthew Harris
Assistant Director, Family & Children’s Association
Hempstead SNUG & MPower Gun Violence Prevention Programs
