CHICAGO — More than 1,000 people gathered in the Loop on Saturday to rally against gun violence, while dozens of others participated in a city gun turn-in program at a St. Sabina Church, in a day of initiative and advocacy to stop gun violence.
Over a hundred people lined up outside of St. Sabina Catholic Church in Auburn Gresham Saturday morning to turn in their guns for a $100 reward, no questions asked, in an effort by the Chicago Police Department to get guns off the streets. An extra $100 was given to those turning in an assault weapon.
Chicago police Superintendent David Brown said the turn-in was “not a trick” to try and charge people with possession of a firearm but a way to help “save lives.” He said Saturday was the first gun turn-in of the year, and the city plans to hold “as many as we can” throughout the year.
About 150 guns had been collected so far shortly after 11 a.m. with a “long ways to go” as a lengthy line of people extending around the corner were still outside, Brown said.
Wayne Lach is a resident of southwest suburb Darien and said he turned in two guns Saturday morning, one that he inherited from a family member and the other from a friend. He said although he waited over an hour to get through the line and processing, the turn-in was a relief.
“It’s a hassle selling the guns to people because you’re worried about the paperwork getting done right,” he said. “This is good because it’s off the streets, taken care of, and you don’t have to worry.”
From a big city like Chicago to a small Texas town like Uvalde, Brown said “no one is immune” to gun violence.
“Our communities are never the same when we have that type of violence,” he said.
Around noon on Saturday, around 1,000 people were loosely gathered on the gray tiles of Federal Plaza to take part in the rally, which was one of more than 500 other planned March for Our Lives demonstrations across the country. Near the edges of the plaza were booths with March for Our lives merchandise, more information on gun violence prevention and advocacy and a table for water and snacks.
Amy Treadwell came to the rally from the southern suburbs with her daughters Zoe Treadwell, 21, and Noelle Treadwell, 15, to support March for Our Lives and its message. Saturday was their first time participating in a March for Our Lives demonstration, and Zoe, who is going to be a senior in college this fall, said the school shooting in a Uvalde “was a big catalyst” for her to pay more attention and devote more of her time and energy to gun violence prevention.
Noelle, who is a sophomore in high school, said protesting is a way for the youth who are still not of voting age to have their voices heard and be able to do something about the problems they are facing head-on.
Amy Treadwell, a former teacher, said she is “so done” with how easy it is to purchase a gun and making the gun industry “so much more important than the lives on earth.”
“Seeing how they vilified the teachers right away instead of vilifying the gun manufacturers and vilifying the laws that have allowed this to happen,” she said. “Those things have to change.”
Wife and husband Morgan and Tom Vance came to the rally from Sauganash with their 10-year-old son Asher Vance, who said he was taking part because he “shouldn’t have to feel scared to go to school.”
Morgan said it’s important for her son to be included in the movement because she feels Asher is most affected by gun violence as he is the one going through active shooter drills at school and having to normalize being fearful.
“I feel like we’re sacrificing particularly our children’s safety to protect this false interpretation of the Second Amendment,” she said.
Tom said being involved in March for Our lives is a way for legislators and leaders to “hear and see that people are concerned about this,” and the movement should be pushed “as far as they’ll let us push it to try and protect our kids.”
Although glad to be a part of Saturday’s rally, Asher said he wished there wasn’t a reason for him to be there doing something “for the kids in Texas who got shot.”
“I feel two very strong emotions,” Asher said. “I feel sad, and I feel angry. I feel sad because I shouldn’t have to be scared to learn something new every day, and I feel mad that I have to feel scared to go to school and that it is taking us this long to take action.”
———
