ROOT, Inc. founder Kenny Barnes Sr. accepts an award from the National Press Club for his service advocating for gun violence victims.
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We Have a Public Health Crisis!
In 2001, Kenny Barnes Jr. was the proud young owner of a new clothing boutique on U street. While some doubted his ability to succeed, he stood tall and persevered, determined to make a living as an entrepreneur in a tough part of Washington, D.C. But on September 24th, he was shot in the face by a 17 year old with an illegal gun.
Tragically, it was not the first time that the child with a handgun had killed, it was the third. But the broken juvenile justice system could not provide the adequate support for the young man, and he was quickly caught in October and then sentenced to 105 years in prison.
After seeing how the system had failed, Kenny Barnes Sr., an M.S. in Psychology, put his life savings into forming Reaching Out to Others Together or ROOT, Inc. His mission was to change the perspective of the gun control debate and hone in on the causes of gun violence so that real strategy could be formed to end it. His struggle and his grief fuels his work, and others have taken notice. He has been featured in the District Chronicles newspaper, and in May of 2009, he was honored with the National Crime Victim Service Award by then Attorney General Eric Holder.
He stays true to his ethos, the only way to tackle this problem is to reach out to others. He has worked with Mothers Demand Action, operated a community center in the Southeast area of Anacostia, and surveyed youngsters from D.C. about the effects gun violence has had on them.
Through it all, he has discovered the stunning truth about the gun control debate in America: it is not a legal issue, it is a public health issue. It effects everyone, but by coming together and sharing the struggle, we can all heal from our stories, and eventually end gun violence.
Tragically, it was not the first time that the child with a handgun had killed, it was the third. But the broken juvenile justice system could not provide the adequate support for the young man, and he was quickly caught in October and then sentenced to 105 years in prison.
After seeing how the system had failed, Kenny Barnes Sr., an M.S. in Psychology, put his life savings into forming Reaching Out to Others Together or ROOT, Inc. His mission was to change the perspective of the gun control debate and hone in on the causes of gun violence so that real strategy could be formed to end it. His struggle and his grief fuels his work, and others have taken notice. He has been featured in the District Chronicles newspaper, and in May of 2009, he was honored with the National Crime Victim Service Award by then Attorney General Eric Holder.
He stays true to his ethos, the only way to tackle this problem is to reach out to others. He has worked with Mothers Demand Action, operated a community center in the Southeast area of Anacostia, and surveyed youngsters from D.C. about the effects gun violence has had on them.
Through it all, he has discovered the stunning truth about the gun control debate in America: it is not a legal issue, it is a public health issue. It effects everyone, but by coming together and sharing the struggle, we can all heal from our stories, and eventually end gun violence.
