Handguns and the Young Still Hamper Chicago

Babes in Arms

Chicago -- There are many things that are great about Chicago. We have our beautiful lakefront, Millennium Park, historic museums, excellent food, and lots of diversity. Even so, there are things that are not so great about the Windy City. At the top of the list is the violence due to handguns in Chicago.

You watch a movie, that takes place in an urban setting, and sometimes you'll see a person carrying an Uzi submachine gun, or something similar. Realistic? Not for Chicago.

As told to me by an anonymous source, except for the occasional assault rifle, illegal handguns in Chicago are the problem. Illegal, because in Chicago, you are not allowed to own a gun, unless you are a member of law enforcement.

"In the past 15 years," says my source, "the problem of handguns in Chicago has gotten worse."

"Who owns these guns?" I asked.

"Most of the guns are being found in the hands of people under the age of 21. You're dealing with kids that don't value life. They don't care about their own life, and they don't care about yours. They haven't been taught to value life."

In addition, these young people are exhibiting a complete lack of fear.

Says Phillip Jackson, founder of the Chicago community outreach group the Black Star Project, "These young people could care less whether there are 1,000 police officers or 100,000 police officers on the streets."

A child who lives in a two parent household, in a single family home, in a decent neighborhood, has a better chance of getting a good start. So what is the life like for those young people who own handguns in Chicago?

"They live in primarily single parent households in poor, inner city neighborhoods," says my source. "You've got generations of families living in one house. Typically, it's a case of the house belonging to a grandparent and then people have moved in with the grandparent, rent free."

"If handguns are illegal in Chicago, where are these kids getting them?"

"You can buy handguns in other areas of Illinois and then bring them in," my source says.

"The best way to deal with guns is to remove the guns," my source concludes, "and efforts are being made every day to do that."

Source: The Daily Voice