‘Show Us Your Guns’ grads celebrate new chances

GARDEN CITY, Ga. (WTOC) - A group of young adults celebrated second chances Tuesday night after completing the “Show Us Your Guns” program, a prevention and intervention initiative aimed at steering youth away from violence.

The graduation took place at the Empowerment Center in Garden City. Graduates, dressed in purple, walked across the stage to mark the completion of the program run by the Chatham County Gang Prevention and Intervention Commission.

The program challenges the traditional meaning of the word “guns.” It teaches young people to recognize their own strengths, talents and goals as tools for success instead of turning to violence.

Ma’kell Williams was among the graduates.

“Heart racing, cases finna get dropped, this is the best feeling,” Williams said.

Williams said he grew up with a single mother in the projects and was heading down the wrong path. He said the program taught him the importance of setting goals, surrounding himself with people who want to grow, and staying away from local drama.

“You got to be tired of being tired. You got to be tired of being tired or you got to surround yourself around the right people. Talk to the right people,” Williams said.

He also spoke about the need to move past negative influences.

“As a young Black man, as a young man — to be successful, you have to look past all that. Just keep moving forward. Once you realize you’re bigger than that, there will be more positives in your life and your life will go way better,” Williams said.

The graduation comes in the wake of recent shootings in Savannah, including a weekend incident in which 27 rounds were fired. It also follows Chatham County Sheriff Richard Coleman’s announcement of a new gang enforcement unit and his declaration of a war on gangs.

Williams acknowledged the presence of gangs in the community but said he has moved beyond that lifestyle.

“Yeah, there’s gangs in Savannah, there’s gangs everywhere. I could say most gangs in Savannah are mostly people, young boys that grew up together that just formed a bond. But either way, it’s still violence that makes it a gang,” Williams said. “Me and my friends we on like — let’s buy land and let’s start a business. Once you go past that and realize you better than the rest, you don’t want to single yourself out in a gang and be part of a gang — you always want to be yourself at the end of the day.”

Williams said the program helped him grow, manage life’s struggles and focus on long-term success. He believes more young adult groups, camps and organizations like “Show Us Your Guns” could help keep others from falling into cycles of violence.