Columbia Urban League Urges Community Involvement

COLUMBIA (Oct. 2, 2023) – The Columbia Urban League (Columbia, SC) held a press conference this past Friday, Sept. 29th, urging the public to be more involved in their community.

The press conference comes out after a fatal shooting the previous weekend that took the lives of three teenagers. Three other individuals have been arrested.

President of the Urban League, J.T. McLawhorn, said, “We can’t be numb we have to be alert this is the time to be proactive. There are people who will say ‘well I don’t know what we can do. We have to get the firearms off the streets.’ Well, we got to do that too, but that’s not an excuse to not be more engaged with our youth.”

Officials are calling for everyone – parents, local businesses, and faith leaders – to be more present and be more involved with local youth. The Urban League has several programs geared towards youth of all ages.

Hamilton Grant, a former participant in the Urban League programs, said, “They really need to see people that look like them from the same communities and the same backgrounds so we’re calling on more mentors.”

Parent Charnice Starks-Ray, who participated in Urban League programs when she herself was young, has a son who is currently participating in the same Urban League programs. She urges parents in the region to take advantage of the resources provided by the Urban League.

“There is someone out there willing and wanting to help your child, but we have to do our part as well,” she said.

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