Community Gun Violence and the Champaign County Community Coalition

Tracy Parsons of the City of Champaign traced local gun violence to systemic racism, disinvestment, and education and criminal-justice failures; recounted how the 2009 police shooting of an unarmed 15-year-old led to a 400-person community meeting and the founding of the Champaign County Community Coalition; and described its five priority areas plus the Fresh Start and Go Getters initiatives. He closed by challenging the University of Illinois to engage students, stop treating the community as research subjects, and recruit local youth. Audience Q&A followed. Spring 2019 series "RESIST: Building a Culture of Nonviolence."