Rev. Jackson calls for White House conference on gun violence
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Rev. Jesse Jackson is asking for a White House conference on what he is calling an emergency call for action to stop gun violence on the streets of Chicago and in other major American cities.
Rev. Jackson said it is not safe for families to walk in parks or sit on their porches in many Chicago neighborhoods, and also weighed in on the demands of some alderman for the police superintendent to resign.
He is not calling for police Supt. Garry McCarthy to quit, saying now is not the time to point fingers or blame one person for Chicago's gun violence problems. Instead, he and his supporters say Chicago is in the midst of a crisis which they say has made the city the epicenter of violence in America.
"We need the president at home now," Rev. Jackson said. "Children are not safe in their home and parks."
Saturday Jackson and his supporters called on President Obama to convene a White House conference on gun violence in Chicago, while asking him to declare a state of emergency after recent gun violence in the city and around the country, most recently a mass shooting at an Oregon community college that left nine dead.
VIDEO: Rev. Jesse Jackson talks about plan to end Chicago gun violence
"In Chicago, every two and a half hours someone is shot," said State Sen. Jackie Collins. "So every day we have a Sandy Hook. Every day we have a Columbine. Every day we have an Oregon."
"The problem that he solves here, it will be good for the rest of the nation," said State Rep. Mary Flowers.
The plea comes from a collection of community leaders, pastors and elected officials who gathered at the South Side headquarters of the civil rights organization this weekend for a meeting demanding the president take action.
"You would never send a group of our soldiers into war without a general," said Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin. "We need a gun violence coordinator."
The group says this September was the most violent month in the city since 2002, with more than 50 people shot in Chicago two weekends in a row.
While aldermen in the Chicago City Council's black caucus are calling on McCarthy to resign, West Side Pestor Ira Acree says the problem is bigger than that.
"We need economic empowerment, we need sensible gun legislation, and we need resources for mental health," Rev. Acree said.
Just like Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who expressed anger over the uptick in shootings, some in the group there was also a call for stiffer gun laws.
"National laws matter," said Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins, IllinoisVictims.org. "We need universal background checks."
The group did not outline exactly how they are going to convince President Obama to convene the meeting.
If they are successful, it is also unclear if any of the ideas or proposals would be put in place because the president so near the end of his time in office.
