SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Three separate rallies were held in Sacramento all focused on stopping gun violence in the Sacramento neighborhoods of Del Paso Heights, Oak Park and Valley Hi.
The message was simple: “Silence the Violence.” It was an urgent call out, hoping to curve the gun violence in underserved communities.
“Violence is just running rampant,” said Edna Mitchell, who attended the Oak Park rally. “It just seems as though guns are just growing throughout our community and is growing in the wrong hands.”
With 22 homicides thus far in Sacramento, people stood at the corner of major roads like Mack Road, Marysville, and Martin Luther King Jr boulevards, saying things cannot remain the same.
“We need to teach our people young and old, how to handle disputes without reaching for a gun,” said Pastor Anthony Sadler, who is with Shiloh Baptist Church.
This rally comes as community members are fed up with the violence happening in concentrated small area, underserved communities like Del Paso Heights, Oak Park, Meadowview, and Valley Hi.
“There are little kids running around in these neighborhoods that don't deserve to live in this type of world,” said Jocelyn Claytor, who attended the rally in Oak Park.
“Seemed like there's no respect for the law,” said Pastor Terrell F. Jones, who is with New St. Bethel Baptist Church.
Church leaders say these rallies are not a one-time thing, and it is time to stop the pain of grieving families burying their loved ones too soon.
“That's what I feel is happening. They're desensitized, 'Oh, another person dies' until it comes to their home. I do not want it to come to my grandchildren; I do not want to come to my children,” said Pastor Jones.
Organizers say the next step is working with Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester on creating a plan to help reduce violence in the underserved communities.
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