“later that night
i held an atlas in my lap
ran my fingers across the whole world
and whispered
where does it hurt?
it answered
everywhere
everywhere
everywhere.”
~Warsan Shire~
Warsan Shire (born 1988) is a Somali–British writer, poet, editor and teacher. Shire was born in 1988 in Kenya to Somali parents. She immigrated to the United Kingdom aged 1. Shire has a . As of 2015, she primarily resides in London.
Little girl, trying to sleep in your bed
don’t listen to the sound of the bombs nearby
just close your eyes and try not to cry
and let your brother sing you a lullaby.
And don’t listen to the noise of the guns
as the bullets flash by your door, don’t cry
just think of the peace found in sleep
while your brother sings you a lullaby.
Little girl, as you sleep in your bed
when you dream, try not to dream of the day
when soldiers came with their guns
and took your father away.
And when you wake up to a new day
looking for the sun, through the dust and smoke
try to find some hope in that terrible place
as you and your brother strive to cope.
Little girl, war is the world of grown ups
and there is nothing you can do
even if you tell them of your fear and sorrow
no one will listen to you.
But when the war is over and done
and you no longer hear an exploding shell
maybe your young life will be a better place
more like Heaven and less like Hell.
The US has far more gun-related killings than any other developed country
Why are there so many shootings?
One piece of this puzzle is the national rate of firearm-related murders, which is noted above. The United States has by far the highest per capita rate of all developed countries. According to data compiled by the United Nations, the United States has four times as many gun-related homicides per capita as do Turkey and Switzerland, which are tied for third. The US gun murder rate is about 20 times the average for all other countries on this chart.
That means that Americans are 20 times as likely to be killed by a gun than is someone from another developed country.
We’re done talking about your right to use guns, it’s time to talk about our right to be free from gun violence!
The NRA and morally corrupt Politicians refuse to recognize “gun violence” as a public health crisis and have fought every bill meant to curb the illegal gun market and keep the guns out of the hands of convicted felons, people convicted of domestic violence and people with a severe mental illness. As far as we are concerned, the NRA and morally corrupt Politicians have just as much blood on their hands as the people who are actually pulling the triggers.
“Unforgotten” Exhibit Brings Faceless Victims of Chicago Gun Violence to Life
The traveling art exhibit was commissioned by the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence.
Blair Holt, a 16-year-old honor student, was killed by a teenage gunman in 2007 when Holt was riding to his grandparents’ store after school.
Now in 2015, a life-like sculpture of Holt — without a face — stands in a plaza at the corner of Huron and Rush Streets as a reminder of the toll gun violence has taken on the Chicago area.
The sculpture is part of a public art exhibit called “Unforgotten” headed by the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. Holt is one of eight victims of gun violence memorialized in the exhibit.
Among the others represented are 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, an honor student killed while sitting in a park after school days after attending President Obama’s second inauguration; 19-year-old Ryanne Mace, who was killed by a suicidal gunman in a classroom at Northern Illinois University; and 18-year-old Terrell Bosley, who was killed in a church parking lot before the start of choir practice.
Sculptures of Jitka Vesell, Hadiya Pendleton and Blair Holt stand in the plaza at the intersection Rush and Huron Streets as part of the public art exhibit “Unforgotten.”
~~GALLERY~~
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The sculptures, which are made out of plaster and wire mesh, are dressed in the victims’ real clothes, and the dimensions of the sculptures mirror their actual height and weight.
From behind, it appears they are real people. A view from the front, however, shows a faceless person with a hood partially concealing the empty space where his or her face would be.
The purpose of the art exhibit is to raise awareness of gun violence in Chicago as well as throughout the state of Illinois. The sculptures currently reside in the plaza at Huron and Rush, but they will travel across the state in the coming weeks.
Unforgotten is a traveling exhibit that features arresting memorial statues that represent actual victims of gun violence. Working with victim families, we created lifelike statues of the victims in their actual clothing.
Shocking? Yes.
But each statue is an emotional and powerful reminder of the senseless loss of life due to gun violence. This documentary video shares the personal stories behind the victims and the emotional reactions of those who experienced this first exhibit.
It Is What It Is 