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Kenichi Phillips, 18, was fatally shot as he sat in a car in Ladywood on March 17
THE HARSH realities of youth violence were brought into sharp focus at a day to celebrate the life of Birmingham teenager Kenichi Phillips who was shot dead in the city three months ago.
Urban youth specialist Craig Pinkney, a lecturer at University College Birmingham (UCB), who paid tribute to Kenichi, spoke about the work he is doing with his outreach group Real Action UK.
The event to honour Kenichi was held at the Soho Youth Project in Winson Green. He was fatally shot as he sat in a car in Ladywood on March 17.
Tesfa Robinson, a semi-professional footballer, who is also a student working on UCB’s Community Safety: Working with Gangs programme, organised a football tournament for local youngsters during the day.
OUTREACH: Craig Pinkney, from left, with Elijah Phillips, Nighat Parveen and Tesfa Robinson at the event
Shabana Mahmood, Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood, unveiled a plaque in memory of 18-year-old Kenichi.
Nighat Parveen, senior youth worker at the Soho Youth Project, said: “The event was simply to raise awareness and to create a platform for young people and the wider community to understand some of the issues surrounding gun and knife crime.
“It also gave us a chance to celebrate the life of Kenichi, a popular youth club member, who died at the hands of a gun.”
Kenichi’s uncle Elijah Phillips, said: “As a loving uncle, seeing the community come out for my nephew and support our family was great; we just couldn’t ask for more.”
• A man aged 37, and a 17-year-old youth have been charged with his murder.