Latest news with #GunViolenceAwarenessMonth
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Spotted the orange flag above the Tacoma Dome? Here's what it means.
On June 4, an orange flag was raised on the Tacoma Dome. Three years ago, Mayor Victoria Woodards declared June as Gun Violence Awareness Month. In June 2023, the annual tradition of raising the orange flag on the Tacoma Dome began to encourage the reduction of gun violence, city spokesperson Maria Lee told The News Tribune Thursday. 'In the State of Washington, there are about 850 gun deaths every year, with a rate of 10.8 deaths per 100,000 people,' according to Mayor Woodards' May 2022 proclamation. In response to those statistics, Tacoma uses one of the city's most iconic buildings to shed light on the issue. The color orange has become a symbol of gun safety as part of the Wear Orange campaign and National Gun Violence Awareness Day, which is June 6. Orange was chosen because that's what hunters wear for safety, according to a previous News Tribune article. The flag will get taken down on Monday, June 9, but efforts to promote safety will continue throughout the month. For example, Tacoma helps fund Summer Late Nights, a program that aims to reduce youth violence, Lee said. From June 23 to Aug. 29, middle and high schools throughout Tacoma will have their doors open on weeknights for students. Students have the opportunity to get dinner and hang out with friends, according to the Parks Tacoma website. 'The City of Tacoma maintains our commitment to end senseless gun violence with evidence-based solutions, and pledge to do all we can to keep firearms out of the wrong hands,' the proclamation said. Editor's note: This story has been updated to include information about the Wear Orange campaign and National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Spotted the orange flag above the Tacoma Dome? Here's what it means.
On June 4, an orange flag was raised on the Tacoma Dome. Three years ago, Mayor Victoria Woodards declared June as Gun Violence Awareness Month. In June 2023, the annual tradition of raising the orange flag on the Tacoma Dome began to encourage the reduction of gun violence, city spokesperson Maria Lee told The News Tribune Thursday. 'In the State of Washington, there are about 850 gun deaths every year, with a rate of 10.8 deaths per 100,000 people,' according to Mayor Woodards' May 2022 proclamation. In response to those statistics, Tacoma uses one of the city's most iconic buildings to shed light on the issue. The color orange has become a symbol of gun safety as part of the Wear Orange campaign and National Gun Violence Awareness Day, which is June 6. Orange was chosen because that's what hunters wear for safety, according to a previous News Tribune article. The flag will get taken down on Monday, June 9, but efforts to promote safety will continue throughout the month. For example, Tacoma helps fund Summer Late Nights, a program that aims to reduce youth violence, Lee said. From June 23 to Aug. 29, middle and high schools throughout Tacoma will have their doors open on weeknights for students. Students have the opportunity to get dinner and hang out with friends, according to the Parks Tacoma website. 'The City of Tacoma maintains our commitment to end senseless gun violence with evidence-based solutions, and pledge to do all we can to keep firearms out of the wrong hands,' the proclamation said. Editor's note: This story has been updated to include information about the Wear Orange campaign and National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Gun Violence Awareness Month: Philly leaders discuss violence after triple shooting in Tacony
PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia officials are marking Gun Violence Awareness Month in the city as gunshots echo in the Tacony neighborhood overnight, wounding three. What we know Police canvassed the 6300 of Torresdale Avenue, handing out information to neighbors who awoke Tuesday to the pop, pop of gunfire. Gary Jauss has lived on the block for 20 years and raised his daughter here. "I just heard a lot of gunfire. I was scared I didn't want to come out," he said. Investigators said it was after 1 a.m. Tuesday when a 21-year-old was behind the wheel of this light-colored sports vehicle when it was struck by a wave of 13 bullets. The driver was hit in the shoulder. Two other men, 24 and 48 years old, seated together on a porch, were also struck. Police say the 48-year-old is in critical condition. A resident, fearing retribution for speaking, asked FOX 29 not use his name. "I was shocked I said on Torresdale? I was stunned and lost for words- -to know there's a school right here," he said. What they're saying Across the city, on the second floor of City Hall, officials gather to mark the beginning of Gun Violence Awareness Month, in a city where gunplay seems ever-present. Adam Geer is Philadelphia's Chief Public Safety Director. "There are going to be some bad moments as we move forward as we continue towards this promised day we all want," said Geer. Pointing to falling homicides, Mayor Parker argues the city is on the right track. "Whenever we lose a life, it's not just a statistic that's a loved one, that's somebody's child, somebody's loved one, so we can't take our foot off the gas," said Mayor Parker. Back in Tacony, neighbors gathered in small groups to talk and hope for a summer of peace. "I just pray it gets better. I just pray for citizens- -hoping everybody makes it home peacefully and crime stops somewhere, somehow," a resident said.
CBS News
2 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Philadelphia art show offers moment of peace for people who have lost loved ones to gun violence
Peace in Philly art show honors those lost to gun violence, helps loved ones start to heal Peace in Philly art show honors those lost to gun violence, helps loved ones start to heal Peace in Philly art show honors those lost to gun violence, helps loved ones start to heal In a room where everyone has lost loved ones to gun violence, an art show Tuesday night in Philadelphia offered a rare moment of peace. Each portrait — bright, bold and deeply personal — captures the spirit of a life taken too soon. Danielle Shaw-Oglesby's daughter Dominique was a 23-year-old Penn State student when she was murdered on March 18, 2018. "She was bright, she was happy. She would light up a room. She was about community," Shaw-Oglesby said. She would have graduated that spring. "I take it day by day through the grace of God," she said. As do many of these grieving families, who gathered at Ezekiel Baptist Church, where Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson hosted "Peace in Philly," an art show in honor of Gun Violence Awareness Month. CBS News Philadelphia "In 1998, I lost a cousin to the senseless gun violence in South Philadelphia, and from that point forward, I started teaching young people conflict resolution, anger management and most importantly, anti-street education," Johnson said. "So this is an issue that is very near and dear to me." The show was curated by Zarinah Lomax, founder of The Apologues. Lomax began using art therapy to help families process grief after losing her friend Dominique. "You see the type of emotion that comes when someone sees their loved one," Lomax said. "It can trigger them sometimes to help them to understand where they are on their journey, and then get connected. A lot of people have come to the exhibitions over the year and become family." Although most say the pain never subsides, studies show art therapy can help reduce PTSD symptoms in trauma survivors. "I can still keep a piece of her with me," Shaw-Oglesby said. "Because the art is just so beautiful, and it's staying, it stays with me. It's here forever."
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Gun violence has declined, but groups fighting it say more needs to be done
HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) — It's an issue so serious that it merits a month of focused attention. Gun Violence Awareness Month is underway, and while the city has positive developments to report in the struggle to reduce and prevent shooting incidents and deaths, crime numbers show that there's more work to do. More Local News A program that supports anti-violence groups through unconventionally raised funds is set up to do the additional work, according to the Manhattan district attorney and leaders of the groups receiving the support. One of those groups is Street Corner Resources, a Harlem-based violence interruptor organization. On Tuesday morning, it was one of 11 groups to receive grants from the district attorney totaling $295,000. Iesha Sekou is Street Corner Resources' founder. Its slogan, 'I Am Peace,' she said, infuses the group's work, which is consistent with the overall mission of gun violence awareness. 'That's our movement with young people,' Dr. Sekou said in an interview. 'You read [the phrase] long enough, you think about who you are in that.' She was at an event at Goddard Riverside Community Center in which she and leaders of the other 10 organizations were recognized by District Attorney Alvin Bragg and other elected officials for their work in countering youth violence. The grants they received were funded through the D.A.'s Criminal Justice Investment initiative, which is made up of monies seized in investigations against major banking institutions. More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State Also on the receiving end of the program was the organization Getting Out and Staying Out, or GOSO. James Dunham is one of its participants. He's completed an internship and is now in a GOSO-related security guard training program funded in part by grants from the district attorney's anti-violence fund. 'They paid for it,' Dunham said in an interview. 'I didn't have to worry about paying for it myself.' Andrew Blacks is the executive director of one of the other recipient groups, called Positive Influence. Its participants have grown fifteenfold in its 20-year history, affecting thousands of young people. Blacks said that every one of its many programs — from basketball tournaments, to self-defense courses, to dozens of other activities — lowers the risks teens face, because they have productive things to take part in. 'I'm not saying we can stop gun violence,' Blacks said, 'but we can kind of find ways to give these kids different things and different options.' He was referring to the latest NYPD statistics. They show that in Manhattan overall, shooting incidents in Manhattan are down. More specifically, in the northern part of the borough, they're down more than 28 percent this year. In the southern section, shooting incidents are down 40 percent for the year. However, in that same part of the borough in the last 28 days, there's been a jump of 100 percent. District Attorney Bragg said that it shows that while there's been improvement overall, there's still more to do. 'This is day in, day out work,' he said. 'We're looking at all the cycles,' he said, referring to the various periods of time in which the NYPD compiles crime statistics. 'Seven-day cycle, 28-day cycle, and we pan out and look at the last three years.' Over that time, Bragg said, gun crimes have declined by about 45 percent in Manhattan. Still, he said, more work is needed. Part of that effort, said Bragg, is to consider increasing funding to community groups that provide alternatives. The $295,000 amount is a record that he said he sees going up next year. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
