HUMBOLDT PARK — Humboldt Park residents are planning to rally against increasing gun violence by camping out on a block all night long.
The 12-hour "campout" is set for 6 p.m. Saturday-6 a.m. Sunday at Talman Avenue and Hirsch Street, near where a number of recent shootings have occurred, according to one of the event organizers, Michelle Miner.
There will be a cookout from 6-8 p.m., live music from artists like AfriCaribe from 8-10 p.m., dominos and board games from 10 p.m.-midnight, and a poetry jam from midnight-1 a.m. sponsored by Cup and Spoon.
At 1 a.m., residents will form a line on Hirsch from Talman to Rockwell Street and shine flashlights to symbolize the group's effort to "take back the neighborhood." A vigil honoring victims and their families will go until 5 a.m., which is when breakfast will be served.
"Typically, we do peace marches in the day. But although there have been recent shootings in the daytime most of the activity happens in the evenings," Miner said. "The purpose is to be out there all night so for an entire night nothing can happen on that block."
Miner, who has lived in the neighborhood since 2014, is a member of the newly formed Humboldt Park Coalition Against Violence, which was formed to bring together local churches, smaller organizations and residents fighting against gun violence.
"A lot of us have been talking throughout the summer about how there are a number of organizations that have been working to address crime. We felt that it would be more efficient and more productive if we all came together," Miner said.
Miner said violence on and near the 2600 block of West Hirsch Street appears to have gotten worse, pointing to a few recent shootings in early September.
"Talking to people who have been in the community for a decade or so, everyone is recognizing that what we've seen this last year is quite a bit worse than what it normally is," she said.
It has become so bad, Miner said, that Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) worked with Chicago Police to designate the block an "emergency hot spot," she said. Moreno's office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Miner is also hoping the event helps bring together residents of different backgrounds to "work through different racial and economic barriers."
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