In the lead-up to the Democratic National Convention, signs for the event blanket Chicago’s most visible landmarks. Billboards dot the highways surrounding O’Hare International Airport, and posters around the beaches of Lake Michigan let people know that “Chicago welcomes DNC 2024.”
But the fervor around the convention, and the arena where it will take place, misses the real face of Chicago, residents say: It’s a city defined by the harms of gun violence and, just as importantly, the resilience of its residents.
The Trace spoke to a dozen Chicagoans to learn what they want DNC participants to know about the toll of gun violence on their neighborhoods. Residents, often survivors themselves, said they want politicians to leave their misconceptions behind, look beyond statistics, and visit their communities to directly hear from those affected. These conversations, many said, would help leaders better understand the issue, the work already underway to improve it, and what resources are needed.
Jayden Wright, an 18-year-old resident of Belmont Cragin, has heard outsiders call Chicago a “gun-infested city” shaded by levels of violence that are “through the roof.” There is certainly gun violence, he said, but these exaggerations don’t help. “It takes away and dehumanizes the situation where we just focus on the guns but not the people.”
“I just hope that our new president would prioritize community-led solutions and invest in the pillars that these communities have already built,” Wright said.
What does gun violence actually look like in Chicago?
In 2023, Chicago’s shootings decreased by about 16 percent from 2022. Even with that improvement, nearly 3,000 people were shot last year. Within that period, over a dozen neighborhoods actually experienced more shootings. North Lawndale faced the highest increase, almost 13 percent. As of August 12, shootings citywide were down by 2 percent from this time last year.
Wright is no stranger to gun violence. Throughout high school, several of his classmates were shot, and he noticed his community becoming desensitized with each injury. Now, many accept gun-related incidents as normal. “If we allow that,” he said, “no change will be made, and that will just continue the cycle of gun violence being so prevalent.”
His experience compelled him to join Project Unloaded’s Youth Council, a team of nationally selected young people ages 15 through 21 who spread the message that guns don’t make you safer. A proud Chicagoan, Wright wants visitors coming to the DNC to see the potential of his city.
Ladanna Wimberly, 16, said young people are affected by their environments. She said many teens have a distorted sense of reality. They think owning a gun will keep them safe, she said, but it endangers those around them. “They see a fight and somebody pulls out a gun,” she said. “Now they think they need to have a gun to protect themselves.”
Chicagoans want visitors to know that while gun violence is concentrated in Black and Brown communities, where social resources often are limited, it happens across the city. “It doesn’t discriminate,” said Ricky Flores, a resident of Little Village. Often, people think that you have to be involved with gangs to be affected, he added, but it can happen to anyone, anywhere.
The high number of shootings and deaths in disadvantaged neighborhoods, Flores said, along with the lack of cleared cases, normalizes violence in these areas. He has lost over 20 friends to the crisis and survived a shooting himself.
Several Chicagoans told The Trace that after seeing members of their community shot and killed, it doesn’t surprise them when another dies. Often, they said, they don’t realize how deeply they carry the trauma until they talk about it with others or go through therapy.
The loss, Lakaya Knight, 19, said, forces you into “survival mode.” When her father was shot and killed by a police officer, it affected her ability to connect and build relationships. “Gun violence makes it hard for people to seek help,” the West Pullman resident said. People cope in different ways. Some ignore it, others turn to substances, and some retaliate with more violence, she said, but it’s important to process the trauma.
“Gun violence leaves a scar in the city,” Knight said. “It doesn’t even matter what age, if you’re a baby or you’re old — it’s like a ticking time bomb.”
Several violence prevention organizers, like Pastor Phil Jackson, founder and CEO of The Firehouse Community Arts Center of Chicago, build trust with youth and create safe spaces for them.
He wants visitors to know about the preventative work he and his peers are doing. “You don’t hear about all the impact and all the transformation that’s taking place,” he said. “There are a lot of people who are sacrificing their lives every day to be in spots that have had historical problems.”
As the DNC kicks off, gun violence prevention groups Giffords, G-PAC, and Chicago CRED will host a press conference and panel discussion with politicians and intervention workers in an effort to highlight gun safety. Democratic U.S. Senator Chris Murphy, Giffords founder and former U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, and Curtis Toler, CRED’s director of community violence intervention innovation, will all be speaking.
Words of advice for the next presidential administration
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is arriving in Chicago soon, and residents are reflecting on her track record on gun issues. As vice president, Harris has supported several gun violence prevention measures, such as the launch of a national center to increase the effectiveness of red flag laws. She also oversees the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
A top priority for any incoming president, Chicagoans said, should be reducing gun violence and investing in the places it’s harmed. “It starts with how we rewrite the narrative of gun culture here,” said Wright. “We can redefine what safety looks like.”
He said it’s important to include young people in these conversations. Their perspective would help bridge the communication gap between adults and youth.
Demika Banks has seen young people’s needs up close. She struggled to find help navigating her late son’s mental health needs. In 2017, gun violence killed the 16-year-old.
“Kids can’t really express themselves, what they’re feeling,” she said. Banks wants the incoming president to provide more effective and accessible mental health resources for youth, so that they can learn how to navigate and regulate their emotions.
Most people The Trace spoke to said it’s important that the next president’s public safety policy emphasizes social services over excess criminalization.
Police don’t have to be involved in every situation, said Roxanne Smith, a resident of Austin. The city, she said, spends too much money “locking them up” and not enough on social services. She’d rather see the government allocate more resources toward addressing the root causes of gun violence, such as investing in housing, jobs, vocational training, mental health, and education. “We know what the problem is,” she said. “Now it’s time to have some solutions.”
Others, like Flores, agree that leaders should invest in their communities — in addition to keeping police around. He doesn’t think it’s fair when more affluent areas, like downtown Chicago, get more protection than people in his community, like street vendors.
Leaders know what’s needed, Knight said, but nothing seems to change. “It feels like they’re killing us slowly.” She’ll be watching for elected officials to fulfill their campaign promises — and to keep them, long term. “Don’t just be saying things to give people false hope,” she said.
She wants her future president to work with communities affected by gun violence, and make them feel heard and supported. “You’re people, just like us,” she said. “Remember and know why you even ran in the first place.”
