Today marks what should have been Tom’s 25th birthday. A quarter century that should have been a milestone in a long and meaningful life. But as with every other victim of gun violence, today we can only honor his memory, and we wish it could be otherwise. Today, we also wish we could provide updates on greater progress in reducing gun violence in DC, but as you can see from the chart on 2019 homicide rates, our Nation’s Capital remains in a desperate situation. In 2019, DC was among the American cities with the highest homicide rates. And in 2020, shootings increased dramatically and there were almost 20 percent more homicides than in 2019, marking a horrifying 16 year high for killings.

Progress is just painfully slow. At times it feels as if we are beating our heads against the wall. There are only 13 DC Councilmembers, but some of them still seem clueless about the causes of DC’s gun violence problem, and even less informed about evidence-based solutions which have been proven to work in other American cities like Los Angeles, New York City, Oakland, and several others. And while Mayor Bowser and the DC Council have taken some steps to focus on gun violence prevention, these efforts remain piecemeal, lack focused coordination, and are moving far too slowly to save as many lives as possible.

Far too many men, women, and children were shot and killed in daily gun violence in 2020. This is not just because of a Covid-19 surge; DC’s numbers for both shootings and killings were already on the rise. More than anything, it’s a failure of all of us to get on the same page - the lack of a comprehensive plan. When Councilmembers vote for policies that are opposed by police, prosecutors, victim’s families, and the Mayor, we’re not working in unison to implement proven solutions that save lives. Until everyone joins together, we will not solve this crisis.

In 2021, we have great hopes. And we encourage all of you to push for common-sense strategies to reduce daily gun violence in the DC area, or wherever you live in the United States. When our City Council spends more time on shortening sentences for convicted killers than trying to stop the next killing, it really hurts. If everyone in the community, including our elected leaders, don’t take all the necessary steps to fully implement gun violence prevention efforts and save lives, we’ve failed to provide a safe and decent future to the children out there who just want to live their fullest life possible.

As a family, we continue to appreciate and be lifted by all of your support. We face new beginnings, as we continue to grieve every day. We try to turn the corner from anger and bitterness to an appreciation for the 22 wonderful years that we did have with Tom. But it is hard. And our sense of loss mirrors that of each of you, and of so many families and friends of gun violence victims all around the world. Thank you for remembering Tom. And please remember and honor all the victims. Say their names. They, like Tom, could have made a huge contribution to society and our individual lives. All of us are diminished without them walking among us. It doesn’t have to be this way. Let’s do something about it - and save as many lives as possible in 2021. That’s the only thing that matters.