More than 100 people were shot in Chicago this past weekend amid calls for the city to take further steps to combat gun violence. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and other city leaders asked for more federal resources for “community support,” while others more cogently blamed Illinois’ lenient policies on crime. 

The victims included women and children. Nineteen people died. The city of Chicago is unfortunately not foreign to violence over the Fourth of July, as 57 shootings occurred during last year’s holiday weekend. Erica Pinkerton, the childhood friend of a 74-year-old woman who was shot and injured, heartbreakingly described July 4 as “assassination day.” This disturbing increase in violence from last year reflects a dire need for steps to be taken in the name of combating such malicious violence.