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player ready...A group of 45 young people from Waukegan, North Chicago and Zion participated in 12 sessions of Employee Connections’ Youth Firearm Violence Prevention Program since January, and for their graduation, they got to quiz their elders on their primary topic of study and other issues.
Those adult community members were leaders handpicked by Cynthia Harris, Employee Connections’ founder and executive director. They included federal, state and local leaders who are in a position to take action against gun violence.
Raven Walker of North Chicago was the first to ask a question of a panel of one congressman, two members of the Illinois General Assembly, a member of the city councils of Waukegan and North Chicago, and a representative from the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Walker was among 45 program participants to earn their completion certificate during the Employee Connections’ second-annual Youth Civic Engagement Lunch and Chat With Lake County leaders Thursday at Waukegan City Hall as a reward for completing the nine sessions.
“What are you going to do to prevent gun violence?” Walker asked.
U.S. Rep, Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, state Rep. Rita Mayfield, D-Gurnee, and state Sen. Adriane Johnson, D-Buffalo Grove, all answered Walker’s question with multiple suggestions.
Schneider talked about providing more than $2 million in funding to Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart’s Gun Violence Prevention Initiative, legislation he wants to see passed, and offered suggestions to the young people.
“It’s an issue you are living with every day,” Schneider said. “Community involvement has to play a key role. More young people have to be involved. We need to pass common sense legislation like universal background checks.”
Mayfield was next to answer Walker’s question. She said she and Johnson work together on legislation that can result in a reduction of gun violence. The cooperation is important since both houses of the legislature must approve bills before Gov. J.B. Pritzker can sign them.
“We have to focus on prevention,” Mayfield said. “We need to be more proactive and less reactive. We need to reach kids before they reach the gangs.”
Johnson also encouraged the people in the room to become involved themselves and help their peers to make decisions which will lead to less use of guns. She said involvement with Rinehart’s program is a good idea.
“You are leaders for being here,” Johnson said.
Another participant asked the panel members for ways to reduce the number of firearms in the community. Mayfield talked about the safe storage law Pritzker recently signed. She also talked about ways to get stolen firearms off the street by requiring quick reporting of a lost gun.
Harris said since the start of the year, when the current group of participants began, they met in separate locations she calls cohorts. One was in Waukegan, another in North Chicago, and the third in Zion.
“We want them to be aware of gun violence and be active in decreasing it,” Harris said. “They start by solving problems. We teach them how to prevent gun violence. They learn how to deescalate a situation. If you see something, say something.”
Along with learning ways to reduce and prevent gun violence, Harris said each participant can earn as much as $900 as a stipend.
With many of the participants being high school students, the second question was seeking advice on securing a job. North Chicago Ald. Dante Brooks, 7th Ward, said there were opportunities at places like Abbott and the James. A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center.
“There are summer programs,” Brooks said. “They can lead to permanent jobs at some of those places. There are a lot of opportunities for youth.”
Both Johnson and Waukegan Ald. Victor Felix, 4th Ward, suggested the participants develop networks of people they know or would like to know so when opportunities arise they know about it and can act.
“Networking is so important,” Johnson said. “You are already part of this network. We all have our networks and can reach out.”
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Participants also learned about programs to help keep community members out of the justice system. Karen Levi, the chief deputy state’s attorney for restorative justice, said there are programs where a person with an addiction can receive treatment rather than going to jail.