Opinion | A young man was killed right outside my D.C. church. I’ve had enough.

Kip Banks Sr. is pastor of East Washington Heights Baptist Church.

On April 1, an African American man was shot multiple times, right across the street from the church I pastor, East Washington Heights Baptist Church. That man later died.

The shooting happened in broad daylight at the intersection of Branch and Alabama avenues, a major crossroads in our city. The shooting happened while there were many kids outside on our church grounds enjoying what should have been a carefree recess. The shooting happened while politicians — local and national — were going about business as usual, just a few miles away in the District government building, the Capitol and the White House.

The shooting happened, and a man died — homicides have more than tripled in Ward 7 — but business goes on as usual. It seems that no one cares. There was no statement from the mayor. No statement from the police chief. There was little news coverage. Why is this the case? It’s because the shooting death of black men by other black men in our community has become too routine. It’s almost as if we’re expected to accept urban gun violence.

But it’s not okay. It’s not okay that a man was shot across the street from our church. It’s not okay that this man died. It’s not okay that the streets of the nation’s capital have become like the Wild West. It’s not okay that our kids live with the daily trauma of gun violence. It’s not okay for people to kill people. It’s not okay for our society to love guns beyond sensibility.

Furthermore, I am disappointed. I am disappointed that our mayor and council members have not addressed this issue. I am disappointed by the lack of response from our local and national media.

Our children must be our priority, and the mayor and council members should be here to reassure our children.

Because these shootings are happening at our front doors, I am challenging our churches. The time has come for us to focus less on those petty issues that divert our attention and focus on our young people. We are involved in a battle for their very souls and for the soul of our community, and each one of us is summoned to be a part of this battle. If you are not directly on the battlefield working with our youths and in the community, then we need your prayers and your resources.

What are churches doing? We are marching, we are praying, and we are advocating. Under the leadership of Delonte Gholston of Peace Fellowship Church of Deanwood, people of faith in the community have begun Peace Walk DC, a Friday night prayer march through neighborhoods most affected by gun violence.

Let each of us do all that we can to bring about peace in the streets of Washington.

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