Like the 15-minute film, the live presentation was short, "but very in depth," Johnson said, as it showed the young people it was performed for what happens after someone is shot and/or killed. More: For Linda Thompson, interest in equity led to New Hanover County role In response to a similar uptick in violence in 2016, Johnson worked with Linda Thompson - then the lead public information officer for the WPD, now the chief diversity and equity officer with New Hanover County - to stage a live event, similar to a play, that would become "Stop the Killing." Last year's "uptick in shootings and violence," Johnson said, "is not the worst I've seen, but it's up there."
Johnson has been part of the Wilmington nonprofit world for nearly 20 years and started OOPS nearly a decade ago. Of course, the root causes of why these shootings happen so regularly aren't going away anytime soon: Lack of jobs and educational opportunities for starters, not to mention easy access to guns.Ītiba Johnson is the executive director of The OOPS Foundation, a Wilmington nonprofit whose mission is to address some of these root causes by helping teenagers graduate from high school, get out of gangs and develop life skills. More: Wilmington musicians trek to 'wide-open' but 'risky' South Carolina for gigs When you get that accountability," he said, guns, violence and joining gangs can potentially become less appealing. Teach them that you are responsible for your life. Hamilton said he wants to encourage young people to "make conscious choices. The hope is showing the aftermath of what is often an impulsive act, some day, a young person contemplating violence might give pause. The talk with the surgeon tasked with giving the bad news. The idea behind "Stop the Killing" - which shot last October using an all-local cast and crew - is to give a clear-eyed view of what happens in the real world after someone is murdered.
"Just, the people involved, if you don't know them directly you know someone who does," Hamilton said. Hamilton said he's seen the devastation Wilmington gun violence has wrought, and with kids of his own, wanted to help make a difference. If the film causes even one person to stop and think about their actions before deciding to use violence to settle a dispute, "it's worth the effort," Hamilton said.Ī prolific filmmaker with numerous features and short films to his credit, Hamilton grew up in Wilmington, where he used to rap under the name Crazy Redd. The hope is that, as the film is shown to area youth in the coming year, it might make a positive, long-term impact in terms of local violence. "Stop the Killing" from Wilmington filmmakers Nakia Hamilton and Jay James - produced in association with the Wilmington Police Department, New Hanover Regional Medical Center, New Hanover County Schools and other area groups - was posted to YouTube on New Year's Eve. Now, a locally made short film designed to get area youth to think before they act is trying to reverse that trend. More: Wilmington homicides more than doubled in 2020. These statistics, of course, don't count those who were shot and survived. Half of those killed last year were 35 or younger, and 18 of the 22 victims died after being shot. With 22 homicides last year, the most in recent memory, violent deaths in New Hanover County have been trending in the wrong direction.
It's a scenario that played out again and again in the Wilmington area in 2020.