MORNING HEADLINES  |  Firearms are the No. 1 killer of children in the United States, and no group suffers more than young Black people, according to research by Jonathan Jay, an associate professor in the School of Public Health at Boston University. 

“We saw gun violence exposure go up for every group of children, except White children, in the cities we studied,” Jay said, also adding, “It has all the markers of an epidemic. It is a major driver of death and disability. Gun violence does not get the attention it deserves. It is underrecognized because it disproportionately impacts Black and brown people.”

Rather than bolstering efforts to save lives, officials in the federal, state, and local governments have often undermined them, according to a report by KFF Health News. It undertook an examination of gun violence since the pandemic, reviewing government reports, academic research and interviewed dozens of health policy experts, activists and victims or their relatives. 

What KFF found was that while families suffer, American politicians put in place laws and practices that have helped enrich firearm and ammunition manufacturers, even as gun violence has terrorized neighborhoods already damaged by White flight, systemic disinvestment and other forms of racial discrimination.

Meanwhile, residents in the Lowcountry came together over the weekend to protest gun violence in the community and support those who have lost loved ones to it.

In other headlines

CP NEWS: Challengers take on incumbents in 5 Charleston council seats. Five of six Charleston City Council races in November will be contested with two longtime incumbents — Robert Mitchell and William Dudley Gregory — facing what may be tougher-than-usual competition.

CP MUSIC: S.C. blues star King to offer Aug. 23-24 ‘family reunion.’ Greenville singer and guitarist Marcus King is hosting an annual informal gathering called the Family Reunion Aug. 23 and 24.

ERIN: Lowcountry beaches expected to feel impacts of Hurricane Erin. The storm is expected to turn away from the United States this week, but is likely to bring dangerous conditions to parts of the coast by Wednesday. The National Weather Service has issued a high surf advisory and rip current statement for Lowcountry beaches.