"Aaliyah Day" remembers victims 3 years after Baltimore's largest mass shooting
A yearly community gathering remembers the victims of Baltimore's largest mass shooting, which happened during a block party in South Baltimore three years ago.
On July 2, 2023, two young adults were killed, and 28 other people were injured in a shooting during the annual Brooklyn Day Block Party in the Brooklyn Homes community.
Aaliyah Gonzalez, 19, and Kylis Fagbemi, 20, were killed after shots were fired just after midnight at the celebration that drew hundreds.
"It's the most horrific scene that any parent could ever experience," said Krystal Gonzalez, Aaliyah Gonzalez's mother. "It lives with me. It haunts me."
"Aaliyah Day" brings the community together
Family, friends, and community members gathered on Thursday at Sawmill Creek Park in Glen Burnie for the third-annual "Aaliyah Day" celebration.
Krystal Gonzalez created the event to honor her daughter and other victims of gun violence. She wanted to start something that focused on hope rather than grief and bring the community together to inspire positive change.
"I needed to do something that's going to bring people together, and that's why we have Aaliyah Day," Krystal Gonzalez said.
Thursday's event included food trucks, vendors, a basketball tournament, and a memorial to those lost to gun violence.
Krystal Gonzalez is turning the memory of her daughter into a mission.
"We want to make sure people come to this park, leaving with resources they don't necessarily know are available to them, so we had our Anne Arundel County Work Force Development here," she said. "We had employment opportunities here, SkyZone is here. You know people are coming here and leaving better than when they came."
From here on out, July 2 is a day of remembrance and a day of growth.
"My daughter was everything to me," Gonzalez said. "Aaliyah was my shadow. She was so sweet, so compassionate, very thoughtful. She always considered other people, so you know I just miss her tremendously."
Five people were charged in connection with the Brooklyn Homes shooting, but no one has been charged with murder.
