The mother of a 17-year-old boy stabbed to death in an unprovoked attack has shared her ongoing heartbreak as an exhibition shining a light on the families of victims of violent crimes opened in London.
Speaking on what would have been Shaquan’s 23rd birthday, his mother Jessica Plummer said she still feels like she is in a “dream”, five years on from his death.
“I woke up this morning and (realised) my son is not there,” she said.
“It's like I’m still living in a dream and it's like something that never happened because I'm not accepting it.
"People say you need to accept - but if they are going through the pain like myself they will understand.”
Ms Plummer and six other families - five from London and one from Leicester - are part of the Wake Up exhibition that opened at University of East London this week.
It displays recorded interviews reconstructing the last moments of their loved ones and their thoughts on what needs to change to reduce violent crime.
Curator Allison Vitalis said the lasting effects of violent crime is often ignored in the UK and vital support for affected families is lacking.
“I want people to understand some of their pain and also to realise that they really need help,” she said.
One of the biggest issues is funding for providing support, with Ms Vitalis saying there's "no funding out there".
Ms Plummer described the opening of the exhibition as heartbreaking but was grateful for a platform for her and other families to share their experiences.
“We can talk about how we feel, how much we are hurting how much we miss our loved ones and the fact that its five years on and we still feel the same and knife crime is still on the rise.
“No matter what we do we don't see any changes but we parents don't get any support.
“We get to the trial and it's like everything is about the perpetrator - we have no say. The trial is worse than your child getting killed.
“You have nobody to hold your hand - you're just in that place on your own.
“We don't get justice because, at the end of the day, our children don't come back to us.
“The only place we have is in the cemetery.”
Ms Plummer, who lives in London, and has since started the Shaquan Sammy-Plummer Foundation, said breaking the silence to tell others about their loved ones and how they feel is a big step towards fixing the issue.
“Shaquan was a very loving kind hearted boy who loves everybody just like his mum. He was a very nice young man, a lovely, lovely and loving young man.”
“We don't want anymore young children dying.
“(This exhibition) is a way of educating parents and young people as they come in and listen to the pain and suffering we are going through. By listening it is helping them to help their young children.”
The Wake-Up Room will run from March 13 to 18 (closed Sunday) at the University of East London’s Way Out East Gallery. This is located in the AVA Building on the Docklands Campus, University Way, E16 2RD.
