From Thursday through Sunday of the July 4th holiday, 82 people were shot and 14 killed in Chicago alone. ?Those numbers are incredulous. Yes Chicago is larger than my home city of Charlotte, but 82 shootings just seems unbelievable.
The image that Chicago has now is that of a domestic-type of war-zone. Chicago has become a bit of a joke for social fodder, as people ‘pray’ and send ‘good wishes’ to those traveling to Chicago for vacation or family gatherings. People say that they are scared to go any and everywhere in Chicago. Ross Rice is a security consultant for CBS Chicago. Rice said that Chicago’s problems can be linked to a detrimental trinity of gangs, drugs, and guns.
It is important to note that Chicago already has, technically, pretty decent gun control laws. But what is the problem? Experts say the influx of illegal guns is uncontrollable. I am not an expert on security ?at home nor abroad, but I can say that more attention should be paid to Chicago’s violence problem as well as the United State’s obsession with guns in general. Yes, we concerned citizens have written over, and over, and over again, about how egregious our gun violence statistics are. We are rivaled by no one in the modern Western world in this category. Still, nothing is being done. Congress refuses to act. Local governments can act quicker and often more efficiently to reduce?violence, but clearly what is being done in Chicago is not enough. Police Spokesman for Chicago, Martin Maloney, said that to date, they have had the fewest murders since 1963. While this may sound hopeful, there was no mention of the amount of people shot but not killed. Regardless, the fear of those living in Chicago is real. The thousands of family members and friends who are constantly burying their loved ones, some just toddlers or younger, deserve our attention if nothing else.
I am asking our readers for solutions. What can be done in Chicago and nationwide? No one seems to have the perfect answers and some are downright unwilling to pursue any type of gun control legislation. Should we try and shift our focus to social afflictions that make people more violent, instead of purely focusing on gun laws? Education and opportunities are keys to getting people off the streets and decreasing overall violence. Again, sadly, there do not seem to be too many outstanding job opportunities or educational prospects for those in the inner cities in places like Chicago. Will we put our money and time where it is needed to stop crime before it happens, or will we continue scratching our heads and ignoring this issue altogether?
We live in a sad time where 82 people can be shot in a 4 day span in one city alone, and it barely makes the news nationally. Our sentiments regarding gun violence is becoming startlingly apathetic. I just pray that it won’t take another mass tragedy like Newtown to wake us up, even if it is for only a moment in time.
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