Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin on Sunday demanded a truce between Birmingham gang members after five people were shot and killed over the first two days of the Labor Day weekend in what the mayor’s office believes may be gang-related killings.
In a statement released on Sunday, Woodfin lamented the loss of life and pleaded with individuals who know those affiliated with Birmingham gangs to “ask them to call a truce, ask them to lay low, ask them to chill and put the guns down.”
Between Friday evening and Saturday afternoon, three people were shot and killed in Birmingham, according to the mayor’s office, with five more individuals being shot and two more dying on Saturday evening.
“That’s five lives lost in barely two days,” Woodfin said on Sunday. “Birmingham police are working fervently to provide justice for families devastated by this sudden loss. But as I’ve said before, BPD cannot work alone. We all have a role.”
According to AL.com, this latest rash of shooting deaths brings Birmingham’s current homicide number to 102 total for the year. Birmingham’s homicide rate continues to climb higher each year, with the city recording 132 total homicides in 2021 and 122 homicides in 2020.
“Too many lives have been lost and none of this is worth the cycle of retaliation and death that’s crippling our community and literally snatching your sons’ lives,” Woodfin said. “To the parents, loved ones, children and friends – please connect with your teenager and/or young men affiliated with these gangs and help us find peace. To the OGs, family members, and friends locked up in the county jail, state or federal custody – please help and assist with a truce. We are beyond tired of burying our sons. We don’t want yours buried too.”
