Anthony Clark said when he got a text alerting him to a shooting that occurred Saturday in the parking lot of a bank in Oak Park, he rushed to the area.
Clark, a community activist and an Oak Park and River Forest High School teacher, spoke Sunday at a community gathering he organized in the parking lot of the bank, in the 100 block of Madison Street in Oak Park. He said when he was told of the shooting, he didn’t know at that time that a 16-year-old from Chicago had been shot and killed.
Police said the teen allegedly attempted to rob a 24-year-old man who was legally carrying a concealed firearm.
What impacted Clark most, he said, were the neon placards police officers were in the process of placing beside each bullet casing at the scene. A news release from the Oak Park police on Saturday stated the two had, “apparently exchanged gunfire before the alleged robber reportedly entered a waiting car and fled into Chicago.”
The teen who was shot and killed has been identified by the Cook County medical examiner’s office as Damon Phillips. According to the medical examiner’s office, Phillips was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital about 11:50 a.m. Saturday.
Police said the shooting happened in the parking lot of a U.S. Bank on the corner of Madison Street and South Humphrey Avenue. The group convened Sunday in a parking lot across from the bank building.
“Bullets have no names; bullets don’t recognize faces,” Clark told a little more than a dozen people gathered on Sunday. He added that one of the bullets “could have hit any one of us, no matter our age, no matter our backgrounds.”
Oak Park resident Charity Anne Caldwell, 36, suggested that people talk to each other if they’re worried or concerned about a situation.
“You could go outside and talk to somebody if you’re not sure,” she said. “That’s the thing I don’t get. Why is it call the police or don’t call the police? Surely there is an in between.”
Cate Readling, a 47-year-old Oak Park resident, said she had heard the word “justified” to describe the shooting. She said the only reason someone would shoot a gun is to kill someone.
A retired police officer, Brian Slowiak, 65, responded with: “Once you’ve been shot at, once you’ve heard a shot fired in anger, your position in the world and life changes dramatically, and that’s a thing to remember.”
Slowiak, who lives in Westchester, said he was motivated to come out to discuss what can be done to mitigate the violence because “something has to be done.”
“We’ve tried, and we’ve failed. And it’s time to go back and figure out what we’re doing wrong,” he said.
Iesha Oliver-Hollins, president of Root2Fruit Youth Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works with youth in the Austin neighborhood, said the way children she serves are portrayed by the media “is so messed up. And it’s not really who they are, but they are only expressing what they’ve seen and what they’ve been through.”
She said the neighborhood “is the most damaged community” in Chicago and the children who live there fear for their safety. She said many suffer from post-traumatic stress disorders, have sick parents who can’t afford health care and face myriad other challenges in their lives.
Clark, the activist, said he convened the gathering, which included residents from Oak Park, Chicago and other communities, to brainstorm ideas to combat what he expects to be a tragically violent summer.
“This is not normal. This is not acceptable,” he said. “We’re going to respond, and we’re going to address the issue and try to determine ways to curtail it.”
More Top Picks Best Amazon Prime Day Electric Kettle Deals 2026
Clark recently announced he is running for the 7th District seat against U.S. Rep. Danny J. Davis next year.
Oliver-Hollins said the community can’t wait for politicians to step in to fix the problem. The solutions, she said, have to come from community members.
She encouraged Oak Park residents and children to get involved in the Austin community, whether through hosting block parties or starting a program through Chicago’s park district. Oliver-Hollins said it doesn’t take a lot of money to make a difference in these kids’ lives.
“All you have to have is time, the passion and commitment to do it, and I can guarantee you, you will see a change in those kids,”she said.
Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.