On September 5th, 2016 Chicago Illinois has surpassed 500 homicides, this happened throughout the course of the year and it is expected to rise as the days past. This was the deadliest year the windy city has had in years, over the Labor Day weekend 13 people were killed and 65 were injured all by gunshot. Mothers, fathers, siblings, friends, and strangers throughout the country are devastated that no action has been taken to stop these homicides from reaching half a thousand.

People have been blaming the police for not doing anything to stop this, but the Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said in an interview, “It’s not a police issue, it’s a society issue.” “Impoverished neighborhoods, people without hope do these kinds of things. You show me a man that doesn’t have hope, I’ll show you one that’s willing to pick up a gun and do anything with it.” Most of the homicides have been caused due to guns. People are afraid to allow their children out of the house because of how unsafe the city has become over the years.

Stephanie Armas tell her grandchildren, “I’m sorry I can’t let you go outside today… because it’s not safe.” She also says, “All mothers – because we’re all in some type of war zone, somewhere – you have to teach (your children) to protect themselves.” Most of the shootings are concentrated in the much more poor neighborhoods in the west and south of the city, which are the places have the highest rates of poverty.