Gun control and racial crimes are some of the most topical issues in the United States of America in the last few years, the former more than the latter.
Mass shootings, racially or religiously motivated gun attacks have always brought to the fore how the country should treat guns in private hands but before the politicians agree on anything, the next attacker or assailant strikes.
Ghanaian immigrants and or Ghanaian Americans have been victims of gun violence in the last few years, GhanaWeb tracking shows that three Ghanaians have so far been killed in the US this year alone.
They are:
May 2023 - Ghanaian cab driver murdered by three teenagers in New Jersey
A cab driver was shot and killed by a group of young teenagers during a robbery incident in New Jersey, with police identifying the victim as 57-year-old Ghanaian immigrant, Koffi Addo.
Addo came to the U.S. from Ghana in 2006 determined to work hard — and he did, six days a week, driving a school bus by day, a taxi by night. On the night he died, three teenagers reportedly called All Brunswick Taxi and said they needed a ride to the movie theaters. But evidently, their motives were much more sinister.
"He was a beautiful soul to be taken away from us so soon. He had so much more on this Earth to do," said his widow, Kecia Banks.
Addo had done so much already, having brought his two sons here from Ghana to give them a better life. He also worked to send money back to his village to help others do the same.
He was behind the wheel of his taxi the night of May 18 when he got the call to come to a quiet block of Franklin Township — unaware that three teenagers, just 13 and 14 years old, allegedly lay in wait.
The three teenagers who are charged with killing him are in juvenile detention. His widow, an educator, said that despite her family’s pain, she prays for them.
"Those are someone’s babies and my heart goes out to their families as well. I pray they have strength," said Banks.