HARFORD COUNTY, Md. — Community organizers are conducting a panel Friday evening to talk about youth violence in Harford County and how to combat it.
That panel starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Epic Center in Harford County.
It was organized by Daphne Alston who’s one of the co-founders of mothers of murdered sons daughters. She told WMAR-2 News they invited any and every one they could think of who deals with the youth on a daily basis.
Alston’s willingness to educate and empower the community started years ago when she lost her son to gun violence. Friday’s panel is made up of various organizations throughout Harford County including the NAACP, the county health department, and councilman Andre Johnson.
Alston said implementing change can’t just be the responsibility of elected officials.
“We have the answers to a lot of the problems. We look for it to come from government and other places, but sometimes it's right there in the community and right there with the people that's doing the harm. You can't wait until kids get 12 and 14 no more, you got to start that thing from pre-k to kindergarten. You have to find a way to try to meet them where they are and try to find out what's going on so we can correct it,” Alston said.
Coaches, teachers, parents and anyone who deals with children were invited to join the conversation.
During the panel they even plan to have a counselor that will share tips on how to identify early signs of violent behavior in young people.
Alston said this will be the first of many panels in Harford County about youth violence.
