The precocious 8-year-old was standing before a gathering inside a community center in Newark, N.J., delivering his own passionate plea for an end to violence. During his remarks, gunfire ripped through the area nearby, killing a young man outside the rally.
“Violence came as I was talking,” Nyeeam Hudson told CBS 2 about the Saturday-afternoon incident.
At first the 8-year-old heard the gunfire but continued with his speech. However, he was later stopped by emergency respondents approaching the scene with sirens blaring. “I didn’t know what it was at first, and when I found out I was like, ‘Man,’” Nyeeam said.
According to CBS 2, the shooting originated from a housing complex a few feet away from where Nyeeam was giving his speech. Arrests have yet to be made.
“We’re always trying to do great and positive things, and here it is once again, something negative is happening,” Al-Tariq Best, founder of FP Youth Outcry, which sponsored the rally, told the news station.
“I feel sad and sometimes I just think we can do better as a people and I wonder why,” the aware little boy added. “You don’t need a gun to always solve your problems in certain situations.”
Read more at CBS 2.