Helen Gym: Philadelphians should feel safe celebrating July 4th

Every year on July Fourth, Philadelphia hosts one of the most diverse and vibrant festivals honoring our nation’s independence and democracy. On Monday, after a long day of peaceful celebration, the Parkway descended into chaos and terror — the latest in a string of violent events tearing our city apart.

On their own block, in front of their business, on the Parkway, in all corners of this city — every Philadelphian deserves to live free from fear.

Philadelphians are exhausted and traumatized by the relentless violence our city has faced in recent years, and the lack of leadership at the national, state, and local level to bring any real solutions. But despair is a luxury our city leaders cannot afford.

If shootings continue at their current pace, there will be thousands more shootings and hundreds more gun deaths before the end of the current mayor’s term. There are thousands of lives on the line and a generation of youth who are looking to us to be the cavalry that Harrisburg and Congress refuse to be.

“Every Philadelphian deserves to live free from fear.”

Mayor Jim Kenney may feel defeated, but this city won’t be. There are mental health experts, educators, community leaders, and organizations working around the clock to save our city.

We deserve leadership that understands this crisis for what it is and matches the urgency of the moment with action and necessary resources.

Last year, City Council delivered funding to expand violence interrupters across the city and institute a critical jobs program. More than a year later, the jobs program still hasn’t gotten off the ground, and our violence interruption efforts continue to have far too little impact.

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That’s why I’m continuing my call for a laser focus on the 57 blocks, 10 zip codes, and 25 schools most impacted by gun violence. I’ve led a youth anti-violence agenda calling for a massive investment effort to pull a generation of young people out of the path of violence. This includes mentorship, employment, and recreation programs, as well as targeted efforts around truancy, reengagement, and mental health services concentrated toward the areas most impacted by gun violence. We just piloted a new program to coordinate services for high-risk youth leaving the Philadelphia Juvenile Justice Services Center.

And City Council has led on a #JustServicesPHL campaign for increased trash services, street light repair, and abandoned car removal that is addressing what has been proven: that neighborhood quality of life and violence are inextricably linked.

I’ve supported my colleague Jamie Gauthier’s push for the mayor to declare a gun violence emergency and bring forth a concerted, coordinated, and all-hands-on-deck effort to end gun violence on our streets. This must include the Police Department, community leaders, and anti-violence experts as well as City Council, the district attorney, and others.

The state legislature’s and Congress’ refusal to take action on commonsense gun control restricts our options. But we must nonetheless improve our efforts in getting guns off the streets, and we must challenge what Jonathan Wilson Jr. calls “cultural violence” surrounding those who are most likely to harm and be harmed and provide serious, aggressive interventions and enforcement.

These are proven solutions to combat violence, and all of these projects and programs are now in the mayor’s hands. They require leadership from the mayor to see them through.

We must resist hopelessness in this moment.

We are a great city, whose neighborhoods and people have never quit on themselves or one another. When we pull together, we will come out of this dark moment. I’m calling on us to hope, to believe in one another, and to act with all the urgency our city needs and deserves.

Helen Gym is an at-large member of City Council and chair of Council’s Committee on Children and Youth.