From noon to 3 p.m. a moderately sized crowd began at Westinghouse School to begin its sixth annual march to bring an end to the violence. Usually it is led by Rev. Eugene “Freedom” Blackwell and his wife, Dina “Free” Blackwell, but this year it was led by citizen activist Pooh Boyd.
For some, like Carol Speaks, of Mothers With a Voice, who lost her son outside Phase III to gun violence in 2010, the march was uniquely cathartic. “I ride all around Homewood so I don’t have to ride past The Phase because I can’t stand seeing where he died. So walking past it today was kind of different to say the least.
“When you lose a child, people feel like it’s been six months, two years or five years you should be better by now… I don’t know what I would do without them,” she said as she began to choke up.
These mothers have come to make a radical realization and conclusion to how to end the violence—Turn your kids in.
“If your kid has drugs and they bring them to your house, call the police and turn them in. If they killed somebody and come to your house, turn them in.” said Connie Moore, president of Fathers Who Care and a Mothers with a
Voice member, to a round of applause. “Because that kid who just killed another mother’s child will end up killing another mother’s child eventually and this will just continue. Turn your kids in!”
“The reason why I’m so excited is it wasn’t up to us to have the march.” Rev. Blackwell said. “We said we weren’t going to have the march and people of the community stepped up and said we think that we are obligated to continue the march.”
Unlike most marches, this march was lead with a ride. Ricky Trapp, co–founder of Bikes Up Guns Down and son of Boyd said, “Our main focus was to try to show the streets belong to these kids. You hardly see that anymore, you don’t see kids playing with each other. These kids aren’t even developing relationships with each other, they are just growing up hating each other and they don’t even know who each other are.”
Kids from the Bikes up Guns Down movement were asked to lead as an example that childhood is supposed to be about fun as they marched through the streets of Homewood unafraid.
Mother’s With Voices, a foundation started and maintained by mothers who lost their own kids on Homewood’s streets and surrounding areas had the most speakers of any organization after the march. Of the roughly 10 members in the group, the majority of their children’s murders are unsolved.
Mother’s With Voices founder Lori Cushwell said the foundation was founded so that women who lost their children could have a platform every Monday at 5 p.m. at 100 Sheridan Square so that they can vent.
“One thing I found is after the viewing of the bodies and the funeral there is no one left to take care of them, how they can’t sleep at night and hear their cries,” she said.
New Brotherhood Motorcycle Club member who simply goes by the name Green urged Homewood to wake up, and was harsher on a community that he feels doesn’t do enough to step up and take responsibility.
Starting his speech by thanking the police who keep the peace, he wasted no time in laying into the citizens of Homewood.
“You want to blame the police for your bad kids. You want to blame the police for killing innocent kids when your “innocent” kid just killed four innocent kids! Some of ya’ll mothers want to mess with 5-10 men and when they kill each other you’re at the funeral crying. Wake up Homewood!” he pleaded.
He called out local politicians. “If I’m voting tomorrow, I’m voting for Pooh (Boyd). If you want my vote you’re not just going to come to one march, you have to make your own march. How many of our politicians live in Homewood? Don’t spend your money somewhere else; you spend it in your community. You are your own enemy!”
Most of his talking points were met with approval and chants to “wake up.”
The march started at 12 noon and ended by 3 p.m. with a free community fish fry. The lasting legacy for a march in its sixth year is that the torch has been past from the church to the community itself, organized by the community and fueled by grass roots organizations in the community that have a unified message of know what your kids are doing and turn your kids in.
The Blackwells look at this event as proud parents watching a kid ride on their own without training wheels, and look forward to the next event this fall, which will be a community harvest fest.
“This year’s march is so good for the community because as people were telling me, it brings them hope… they believe that not only God will make a difference but he has empowered us to make a difference,” said Rev. Blackwell.
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