St. Sabina Church community has been walking for peace every summer Friday for nearly 20 years

CBS News

30-05-2025

The St. Sabina Church community is not afraid to take to the streets to fight gun violence; they have been walking for peace every Friday night during the summer for nearly 20 years.
"The communities with the most violence have poor schools, have lack economic development, lack of housing, boarded up buildings," said Father Michael Pfleger, St. Sabina pastor. "It's not, it's, you know, not rocket science. If you take everything, you rape the community of everything, then don't wonder why you have hopelessness and you have violence."
Fr. Pfleger has often reflected on the root causes of violence in Chicago.
"We have made violence part of the wardrobe of America, and guns part of the wardrobe of America, and is now an accepted norm, " he said.
But the St. Sabina community is doing everything it can to reverse what has become the norm. Hundreds gather in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood over the summer for weekly Friday Night Peace Walks. Residents want to stop gun violence and put an end to the senseless killings around Chicago.
The night is more than just a show of force. The church also educates the community about vailable resources.
"We pass out information about services we have, about jobs, about our social service, about if you have a record, you can get an expungement. So we pass out information," said Pfleger. "But the biggest thing people keep telling me is, they come out of their houses and on the porch, we have music plays as we're going down the street. They're dancing on their porches. Their kids are dancing in the street. They talk about the joy of seeing a different presence, you know. And I really think it's so important this year, because there — so many people are depressed and feel so hopeless."
Each Friday, the same question is asked in the neighborhood: Where is the tension?
They hope that by talking that out, another tragedy can be prevented.
This year, the Friday Night Peace Walks at St. Sabina will begin on Friday June 13, and go every Friday until Oct. 1.
CBS News Chicago has partnered with Strides for Peace as the media sponsor for Chicago's Race Against Gun Violence in Grant Park on June 5. Click here for more information on the fundraiser, how to sign up and our coverage of participating nonprofits.