Seven young individuals were victims of gunfire in the vicinity of St. Sabina Church during the weekend. This area has been outspoken in its opposition to gun violence in Chicago for a long time. The impact of the incident still lingered four days later, leaving many deeply affected.
Efforts are underway to support those experiencing a crisis following this tragic event. An emergency support center has been established at the church located on West 78th Place in Auburn Gresham to provide assistance.
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Since the shooting, the community has been mobilizing to take proactive measures. Events like the upcoming take-back-the-block gathering on Friday evening aim to reclaim a sense of safety. Additionally, a police roll call was conducted on Tuesday, and resources were made available to those affected by the shooting on Wednesday.
An emergency assistance center hosted by Chicago police opened at 4 p.m. Wednesday at St. Sabina Church in Auburn Gresham, where community members could find help with counseling and youth services, crime victim compensation applications, and other resources. This center was open until 7 p.m.
The services are being offered days after seven teenagers, ages 17 to 19, were wounded in a weekend shooting steps from St. Sabina.
People need to understand that mass shootings, shooting across at folks, is not acceptable, so this is an example of a community coming together to support people who are victims of that.
Garien Gatewood, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety
Police said offenders in a dark-colored Jeep SUV opened fire as hundreds of young people were gathered outside a house for a post-prom party near 78th and Throop a little before 2 a.m. Saturday morning. All seven victims are expected to survive.
No one is in custody for the shooting, and St. Sabina’s father Michael Pfleger is offering a $10,000 reward for information in the case.
“Parents… where’s your child at one or two o’clock in the morning?” 17th Ward Ald. David Moore said. “You shouldn’t have a hundred kids out at two o’clock in the morning and the parents not know where they are.”
Officials said this emergency assistance center at St. Sabina is not just for those impacted by the shooting over the weekend. Anyone who’s been touched by violence is welcome.
“We saw a pretty tragic incident here just a few days ago, and this is how we need to continue to respond,” said Garien Gatewood, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety. “People need to understand that mass shootings, shooting across at folks, is not acceptable, so this is an example of a community coming together to support people who are victims of that.”
The shooting comes as violent crime is declining in Chicago.
The ABC7 Safety Tracker shows, compared to the yearly average of the past three years, murders in the past 12 months are down more than 16%, the number of shooting victims are down nearly 20% and overall violent crime, which includes batteries, assaults, and robberies, is down 8.5%.
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