Thursday night, over 100 people gathered in a cul-de-sac off Legion Road, near the place where 18-year-old Malik Brown-Burnette was shot. Red and white balloons tied to strollers and cars floated above the crowd as a hymn opened the candlelight vigil.

“Y’all are not only coming here to say that what was done to Malik was wrong, but you’re also standing against gun violence,” a family member said. “That’s what’s most important here.”

The vigil combined grief with a call to action. Brown’s cousin, Lavanda Burnette, said her family’s loss is a sign that the community needs to take a stand on gun control.

“The gun violence in Chapel Hill is real and we, as a community, have to work together with the police to weed out and stop accepting the unacceptable,” Burnette said.

Burnett said she hopes justice is served to those responsible for Brown’s death.

“They need to be locked up behind bars where they belong until they are rehabilitated and not a menace to society.”

Visitors placed flowers, pictures and stuffed animals at the memorial. Photo via Erin Wygant.

Visitors placed flowers, pictures and stuffed animals at the memorial. Photo via Erin Wygant.

The candlelight vigil offers a sense of community, Burnett said. It’s an opportunity for family and friends to support one another and remember their friend, son, cousin and brother.

“It’s a chance for us to get together and remember Malik for the great kid that he was,” Burnette said. “You know, there’s been a lot of talk about drug deals gone bad, but I’m here to tell you, it was a freak incident and he was the victim. He was a great kid.”

Sandra Edwards echoed Burnett’s sentiment, saying that she has known Brown since he was a young boy playing basketball at the Hargraves Community Center.

“He was a great guy- young and had a bright future,” Edwards said. “But if they kept Hargraves open for those kids to come and have somewhere to go, Malik would still be here and we wouldn’t be out here.”

Edwards said that since Hargraves began charging children to use the once free gymnasium, the kids are turning to the streets.

“We don’t have any programs anymore for our kids. This stuff should be free so they can have somewhere to be.”

This has become Nikkima Santos’ mission. Out of all the sorrow and grief from Malik Brown’s death, she has developed a goal to give her community somewhere to go.

“Malik means King. So we are trying to bring our village to a lofty place so we called it ‘Malik’s Village’ in honor and memorial of Malik.”

Santos said ‘Malik’s Village’ will be a program in the community that will teach classes about investigative journalism, home economics and video production, to name a few. She is working to partner with UNC to use campus facilities to help expose children to a college environment.

“I want the kids to be able to go on a college campus so that they can feel like they’re in a different environment and their energy will be reflected in that.”

The crowd released balloons into the sky as the vigil ended. Photo via Erin Wygant.

The crowd released balloons into the sky as the vigil ended. Photo via Erin Wygant.

Santos said she plans to have more information about Malik’s Village during a meet and greet for Chapel Hill Housing on August 6.

“Have you ever heard of the African proverb, ‘It takes a village to raise a child?’ Well right now our village is broken, and in order for our children to grow up in a healthy and stable environment, we need to repair that village. So Malik’s Village is a measure to repairing our village.”

The vigil ended with a song as people in the crowd released their red and white balloons into the sky.

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