Brady Statement on Recent Shootings of Black Youth

Slew of Shootings Last Week Include Four Youth Killed at Alabama Sweet 16 Party, Missouri Youth Ralph Yarl Shot While Knocking on Wrong Door.

Washington, D.C., April 17, 2023 – On Thursday, 16-year-old Ralph Yarl was shot twice in Kansas City, Mo. after knocking on the door of the wrong residence while seeking to pick up his younger siblings. On Saturday, a gunman opened fire at a birthday party in Dadeville, Ala., and Black youths were at least three of the four killed.

Kris Brown, president of Brady, said:

“Black Americans are twice as likely as white Americans to die by firearm. Gun violence is the number one killer of all American children and Black children in particular represent a disproportionate share of youth gunshot victims.

"The Second Amendment does not protect the right to shoot a child for ringing a doorbell, nor was it designed to turn a birthday party into a war zone. Black children have the right not to be shot.

“It is important, as Alabama families prepare to bury their children and Ralph Yarl’s family hopes for his recovery, that this country not look away from how lax gun laws, Second Amendment extremism, and systemic racism hurt Black youths."