Earlier this year, a young boy in Kentucky
became a hero when he and his friends protected a little girl from sexual harassment and physical assault by a middle-aged man. Now, just three months later,
he has been shot dead in a seemingly unrelated attack by another teen boy.
Sign the petition to demand Kentucky lawmakers protect children's lives by passing stronger gun safety laws!Back in April, 15-year-old Da'Jon Anthony Hayes-Burr and several other teenage boys overheard a mother crying out for help.
A 45-year-old man had attempted to prey on her 12-year-old daughter, making sexual remarks to her. He told her mother that the little girl was "never too young to have some fun" and then attempted to lunge at her. As the woman called out for help,
countless adults passed by and chose not to intervene.
But Hayes-Burr and his friends stepped in to help. As the man launched himself at the woman and her child, Hayes-Burr physically protected them by getting in the way and pushing the man to the ground. In response,
the man stabbed him. Hayes-Burr spent a night recovering in the hospital after police arrested the man. When adults asked Hayes-Burr what had motivated him to help, he said he saw "a lot of grown men around. They weren't going to do nothing. So, we had to do something."
The child was lauded as a hero, and rightly so. The governor of Kentucky thanked him for his bravery and selflessness, and he received a municipal commendation.
He obviously had a bright future ahead of him. His kindness and care for others made him beloved in his community. But then, months later, a 14-year-old boy somehow got his hands on a gun. And the teen shot Hayes-Burr dead. Authorities discovered his body lying on a residential street later that night.
How in the world did another teenager even get a gun? This is yet another situation in which a child has been senselessly murdered, and it could have been prevented. Why are U.S. states allowing guns to be so easily accessible, that a teenager can grab one and go kill another thoughtful, kind, heroic child on a random Saturday night?
Why are U.S. lawmakers continuing to prioritize gun manufacturers' profits over children's lives?Kentucky consistently ranks as one of the states with the highest rates of gun deaths; in 2024, it ranked as number 13. Approximately every 10 hours, someone in the state dies from gun-related violence.
The state does not require licenses for gun ownership, has no universal background checks or required checks for private sales, no restrictions on assault weapons, no permits on concealed carrying, and no regulations for open carrying either.
Da'Jon Anthony Hayes-Burr should still be alive. Kentucky lawmakers should have cared enough to take action before, but especially now, they must act to prevent more senseless deaths in the future. Sign the petition to demand that Kentucky lawmakers pass strong gun safety laws, including a universal requirement for background checks and restrictions on open and concealed carrying!