Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel blamed the city’s massive crime problem on a “shortage of values” after at least 75 people were shot over the weekend.
“We have a heavy heart,” the Democratic mayor said at a news conference Monday. “Our souls are burdened. What happened this weekend did not happen in every neighborhood of Chicago but it is unacceptable to happen in any neighborhood of Chicago. We are a better city.”
Between 3 p.m. Friday and 6 a.m. Monday, 12 people were killed and 63 wounded, ranging from ages 11 to 62, the Chicago Tribune reported. No arrests have yet been made.
Mr. Emanuel called on residents to “be a neighbor” and step forward if they knew anything about the perpetrators.
He also said placing the blame for the violence on higher summer temperatures, when crime typically spikes, would be a mistake.
“You can talk about the weather but the weather didn’t pull the trigger,” Mr. Emanuel said. “You can talk about jobs, and they count, but in parts of the city where there aren’t jobs, people did not pull the trigger.
“There are too many guns on the street, too many people with criminal records on the street, and there is a shortage of values about what is right, what is wrong, was is acceptable, what is condoned and what is condemned,” he said.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel: “You can talk about the weather, but the weather didn’t pull the trigger. You can talk about jobs, and they count, but in parts of the city where there aren’t jobs, people did not pull the trigger.” https://t.co/O7smQpUa48 pic.twitter.com/IZvHFdu2dC
— ABC News (@ABC) August 6, 2018
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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