Senators urge community to help ‘mend what is broken’
A senator told of happening upon a woman on Court Street grieving over a relative who had just fallen victim to a roadside shooting, as legislators in the Upper House called for a collective effort for a safer community.
Senators addressed gun violence that included a shooting on Tuesday, when Janae Minors was killed in a beauty salon on Court Street, as well as the double murder of Natrae Eversley, 23, and Nakai Robinson, 18, in an attack on August 12.
Lindsay Simmons, a government senator, said that Bermuda had been “shaken by tragedy after tragedy” in the past five weeks.
She told the Upper House today: “We have lost three lives to gun violence and two more of our sons have been injured. And yesterday we lost a mother, a woman who was not only raising a family but building a business, shaping a future, contributing to the life of this island.
“She was someone’s daughter, someone’s friend, someone’s neighbour, and she should still be with us today.
“Her life was precious, their lives are precious, and today, as we close the business of this Senate, we cannot move on as though these losses are simply a part of our ordinary days.
“They are not. They are tragedies that cut to the heart of who we are as a people.”
She added: “Five weeks ago, I was driving on Court Street, minding my own business, going to pick up somebody.
“I happen to drive up to the scene just as it happened — I heard a grandmother scream for her grandson laying there dying.
“Seeing that scene is something I don’t wish on anyone.
“I was at the scene and I didn’t even know two other people were shot.
“We cannot think this is normal. When violence strikes our small island, it does not happen in isolation.
“Every life lost sends a shockwave across Bermuda. Yes, I know people say we are immune to it now, but we really aren’t.
“We fail in our homes, in our churches, in our workplaces and on our streets.
“Families are broken, children are left without parents, and an entire community is left to ask, when will this end?
“The truth is, none of us are untouched by this. Bermuda is way too small for us to say ‘it doesn’t affect me’.”
Ms Simmons told grieving families: “You are not alone.”
She added: “Words are just not enough. We need healing, we need to rebuild trust.
“We need to remind our young people that their lives matter, that they have worth, that there is a better way than picking up a gun.
“We need to carry hope. The fear is real and it is our responsibility to replace it with trust, opportunity and, most of all, love. We need to spread the love.
“This is a moment for unity, not government alone, not police alone, not churches alone, but all of us together.
“Each one of us has a role to play in mending what has been broken, to listen to the pain, to guide with compassion, to lift up each other.
“We must do more than offer sympathy; we must listen, must show up, we must let our young people know that their lives matter, not only in words but in action.”
Ms Simmons added: “Let us commit ourselves, not just with policies and programmes, but with love and action to build a safer, kinder, more hopeful island for every family, every child, every community.”
Tawana Tannock, an independent senator, extended condolences to a cousin who lost her son to gun violence last month, as well as to other families hurt similarly.
She said: “I can tell you, from my homestead in Hermitage Road, since the tenth of July last year until this year, we have lost three young men within a one-mile radius. And that tells.
“We are not unique; a lot of neighbourhoods are going through that right now.”
The Shadow Minister of National Security and Leader of the Opposition called for “urgent action” in addressing the scourge of violent crime in Bermuda.
A statement from Robert King said: “I am deeply saddened by the news of another the tragic shooting on Court Street, and my thoughts are with the victim’s family and loved ones.
“This brazen act of violence is a profound affront to what Bermudians hold dear — safety, community and peace.
“This is unacceptable. Bermuda must do more to keep our communities safe.
“I will press for urgent action to strengthen policing, prevention and community support so that no one lives in fear.”
Kim Wilkerson, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, told the Senate: “It is true that gun violence in Bermuda is everyone’s problem.
“On an island of 22 square miles and one degree of separation between us, no one would be immune from the impact of this.
“I’ve been in all kinds of forums and chats, and there are some people who say it is an issue for the Ministry of National Security or the Ministry of Justice.
“I say to this chamber and to the listening public, this is everyone’s problem.
“So let’s please think about what we can do and to be better as a community.”
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