CHICAGO (WLS) — The pictures of the dozens of young faces are displayed outside of Lincoln Park Presbyterian Church.
They are all young lives lost to gun violence over the past year.
“Every year, you see new faces on the pictures, and they get younger and younger,” said Rev. Bernard Johnson.
Those children were honored on Sunday night at the church’s Eighth Annual Vigil Against Violence.
“I feel the pain that these parents go through, because I felt it,” Johnson said.
Johnson said he lost his son to gun violence years ago, and joined the Lincoln Park church to help its mission to do more when comes to combatting gun violence against children.
“It takes a vigil like this for us to have people to come in to see what’s really going on. But, a lot of people are not seeing it,” Johnson said.
Also attending the event was Rev. Beth Brown, the pastor for Lincoln Park Presbyterian and an interim commissioner with the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability.
“This year, we have 94 youth under the age of 19 that have been killed. Last year, there were 77,” Brown said. “When we talk about gun violence decreasing, or at least murders by gun violence, it isn’t for youth under the age of 19.”
This year, the vigil featured a panel discussion with members of the community commission.
“Chicagoans are starting to realize that you actually have a voice in public safety,” said Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability President Anthony Driver.
There was also a larger discussion on the impact of accountability in public safety.
“In this accountability space, is accountability really going to impact the level of violence in communities? And, is accountability really going to make a difference in violence in Chicago?” Brown said.
Brown hopes the dozens that attended leave with a greater understanding of the pain for far too many Chicagoan parents and also with a sense of empowerment to effect change.
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