Just this past week, baby Jonylah Watkins was shot 5 times alongside her father who was shot several times as well. Both victims underwent surgery but unfortunately the infant didn't make it and was pronounced dead March 12. Her father remains in the hospital under serious, but stable condition.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/chicago-baby-jonylah-watkins-dead-shot-times/story?id=18710150
This story honestly breaks my heart. Once again, the struggle against gang violence is prevalent. Her father is known for gang affiliations, which is the assumed reason for this attack. The gun violence in Chicago is unbelievable. We are now at the point where hearing about a shooting is normal. The fact that a baby was killed due to gang violence is beyond my point of comprehension. Babies are humans at their most innocent state who only make choices like "Should I cry to let mommy know I'm hungry?" not decisions of whether or not they want to affiliate themselves in gangs. This baby was just as innocent as Hadiya Pendleton. They were both children who did not decide to involve themselves with gangs but by chance, happened to die from gang violence. I just want to know when gangs will realize it's not worth it. It's not worth giving the city a bad rep and it's not worth ruining their lives as well as ending lives.
At LTAB 2013, there were many poets who referred to our city as "Chiraq", assuming that our violence is just as severe as the violence in Iraq. It is sad to feel that my city is going downhill in it's humanity.
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