TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - The Capital City has seen six shootings over the past 18 days.
The violence in the city comes as students are starting classes. Community leaders are now calling for stronger solutions to stopping crime.
The numbers speak for themself: Eight people shot in the Capital City from six shootings since August 18.
"It's very tragic what is taking place right now in our city," said Reverend Derrick Mercer with Bethel Missionary Baptist Church.
"It's gut-wrenching," said Jaworski Vance, a community activist. "Yeah, it's disturbing."
The shootings have been more or less concentrated in the city's westside, some at apartment complexes for students. Some of the suspects are in their early 20s. Reaching young adults is Reverend Derrick Mercer's ministry at Bethel Missionary Baptist Church.
"The greatest decision that you can make at this age is who you surround yourself with, your friends, and I try to tell them to be very intentional about their friends," said Reverend Mercer.
Reverend Mercer said it's not just finding strong peers but mentors who motivate young people to handle conflicts without violence.
"We do live in that culture of having to prove ourselves, you know?" Reverend Mercer explained. "Don't mess with -- I have to make sure people know that I'm not someone to mess with."
When it comes to stopping crime, some say it's holding elected officials accountable. Others say it has to come from within the community, but one activist says there's something more fundamental.
"Yeah, there is a solution to it, and it's called love," said Vance.
Jaworski Vance says not everyone who lives here has the same opportunities, and sometimes, not having those resources leads to crime. But the deeper issue, he says, is understanding where the violence comes from.
Vance said, "Fear begets fear, right? So, if you're walking around afraid, then that person you're afraid of walks around afraid, and then, they do something out of fear."
Finding the right ways to channel that fear, a small but important step in the fight against crime.
