June 27th Weekly Update!
Date: Fri, Jun. 29, 2007
Hi, everyone...
The heartbreaking death of Kenner four-year old Theard Compton hasforced to the foreground one of the original issues highlighted by
SilenceIsViolence when we began work in January: Gun Safety, Gun
Responsibility. We live in dangerous times, and nobody could fault
New Orleanians for wanting to protect themselves. But if you feel
your personal and familial protection must include a gun, please take
every measure to respect and safeguard that gun. The gun that killed
Theard apparently was brought into the house by his 17-year-old
brother Taiwan. Taiwan could only have come into possession of that
gun illegally. Too many guns are illegally sold, stolen, and lost
without a trace in this city—without a trace until they reappear
during a violent crime, that is. If a gun is stolen from your home or
vehicle, report the theft immediately. If you are aware of illegally
owned, sold, or traded guns, call Crimestoppers (504-822-1111) with
information. For more information on efforts to stem illegal gun
trafficking, visit www.bradyfoundation.org or
www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org. Watch the video at
http://www.brightcove.com/title.jsp?title=707305325 for a message from
a broad coalition of America's mayors that is both heartening—New
Orleans is not alone in the problem of underage gun possession—and
frightening: possession of guns by young people is holding the entire
nation hostage. SilenceIsViolence continues to seek opportunities for addressing and
combatting the violence at the level of neighborhood activism, through
a number of ongoing programs: 1. Our City Walks are the first of several neighborhood-oriented
SilenceIsViolence programs that will resume over the next few weeks.
Residents of the Lower Garden District, Garden District, and Irish
Channel are especially invited to join us this Thurday, June 28. We
will meet at Sophie's Ice Cream Parlor (1912 Magazine St.) between
6:30 and 7pm, arm ourselves with gelato and shakes, and walk through
the Irish Channel to Rue de la Course on Magazine and Harmony. The
walk departs at 7pm and should arrive no later than 8pm. The full
route is available at www.silenceisviolence.org. As always,
transportation will be provided back to the starting point. 2. Next, a summer session of SilenceIsViolence/Save Our Brass Youth
Music Clinics at Sound Cafe is about to begin. We call upon all
interested children and adults to join us Tuesday evenings in July
(beginning July 3) at 6pm for free musical coaching, free dinner for
kids under 12, and a performance by the Free Agents Brass Band.
Recent donations of instruments from the Bean family and from Ronn
Gilbert, a musician and supporter in Milwaukee, will make these
sessions especially rich for young people interested in learning
music. 3. Finally, the Speak Up showcase for local high school students,
hosted by SilenceIsViolence and the Dinerral Shavers Educational Fund
last month, was such a success that we are planning a summer edition.
Speak Up! Part 2 will take place at the end of July; we will send more
details as the event draws near. The six-month anniversaries of the murders of Dinerral Shavers and
Helen Hill, two tragedies that tipped the balance for those of us who
initiated the march to City Hall in January and marked the formation
of SilenceIsViolence, are upon us. Next week we will write to you
with updates on the status of both cases and with insights into what
these cases have exposed in the criminal justice and law enforcement
systems. For now, we ask you to keep both Dinerral's and Helen's
families and friends in your prayers, and to remember these two
generous artists in the light of the inspiration their lives provided
for so many of us. We can only hope that their tragic deaths, and the
tragedy of every violent death, will continue to inspire citizens to
fight for a safer New Orleans.
Ken and Baty
