Miami city commissioner Frank Carollo hosted the second annual "Goals Not Guns" forum at the Tower Theater in Little Havana Tuesday.
Law enforcement officials shared their experiences responding to youth gun violence calls. They emphasized the trauma involved, reminding their audience that those experiences follow them home.
Read more: Young Survivors, The Unspoken Trauma of Gun Violence
Two survivors of gun violence, Myya Passmore and Natrinia Stubbs spoke as well. Myya Passmore previously shared her story as part of WLRN's "Young Survivors" series. Commissioner Carollo awarded each with a City of Miami Salute.
Carollo says one of the forum's objectives is to connect groups and programs working to help youth set and achieve goals.
"There's a lot of great programs out there," he says, "but it seemed like they were working in silos."
One such program is CareerSource Summer Youth Employment. Ezekial Hobbes, a Booker T. Washington Senior High School student that has participated in the program for three years, said "it prepared me and my peers, how to save money, what to do with our money, how to have a budget."
Carollo invited celebrities to the event. Radio personality Papa Keith emceed, DJ Khaled sent a video message, and Flo Rida made an appearance.
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