Harris County Commissioner Ellis, Worthing Early College High Officials to Unveil ‘Stop Gun Violence Mural’
ABOVE: Mural was painted by Houston artist Bimbo Adenugba, who worked with Worthing Early College High School students to write the words on the mural.
On January 21st, Harris County Precinct One Commissioner Rodney Ellis and Worthing Early College High School officials unveiled the “Stop Gun Violence Mural” at the school in Sunnyside as a call to action to stop the violence.
“Public art can carry powerful messages and this mural has a bold and important one: Our children are the ones frequently paying the price for inaction on gun violence,” said Commissioner Ellis. “But children are also the ones leading the movement for change. This mural is an incredible piece of public art that I’m proud to host here in Precinct One at Worthing High School. I hope it will remind students at Worthing every day that they are never too young to lead a movement.”
Commissioner Ellis and Street Art for Mankind (SAM) co-founders Thibault and Audrey Decker were inspired to commission the mural after the shooting in Uvalde and the litany of school shootings that have occurred over the past decades. The message is one of hope for a future where students in their schools are safe from the threat of gun violence. Houston-based artist Bimbo Adenugba painted the mural with help from Worthing Early College High School students.
The mural depicts a school setting with the Houston landscape in the background along with students and teachers holding signs. It calls for a ban on high-caliber weapons and a focus on safety and protocol when it comes to guns.
“This is particularly important in the context of a school, where the wellbeing and education of our young people are at stake,” said Samson Bimbo Adenugba, a Houston-based painter/illustrator originally from Nigeria. “We must do everything in our power to protect them.”
The Sunnyside, South Park, Greater Old Spanish Trail and South Union areas now participate in Harris County Public Health’s Community Violence Interruption Program, which focuses on youth and young adults at higher risk of being impacted by gun violence. To break the cycles of violence, outreach specialists, trained in mediation and conflict resolution, work in the community with at-risk youth and in the hospital with survivors of violence. They also provide enrollment assistance to youth and families for benefits like food and housing assistance, medical and mental health care, which can help stabilize people’s lives and reduce violence.
Over the past decade, Texas has had more school shootings than any state. These deaths are preventable, Commissioner Ellis said.
“But instead of creating responsible gun safety measures, Texas has loosened our gun laws,” Commissioner Ellis said. “Despite the challenges created by Texas leaders fueling the crisis with dangerous gun laws, Harris County is working every day to prevent gun violence through art and meaningful action that have the power to save lives.”
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