Chicago, NYC and Atlanta saw a rash of shootings over the holiday weekend. At least 74 Chicago residents were shot — 17 fatally — in one of the bloodiest 4th of July weekends in the city’s history.
More than a dozen people were shot in Atlanta, including an 8-year-old girl who was killed by Black Lives Matter activists at the burned out Wendy’s restaurant where Rayshard Brooks died last month.
8-year-old Secoriea Turner was riding in a car with her mother and a male friend when she was shot and killed by BLM activists guarding the burned out shell of a Wendy’s restaurant in Southwest Atlanta on Saturday.
Secoreia was shot when the driver of the car she was a passenger in made a u-turn to get around barricades set up by demonstrators to block the street, WSB-TV reported.
“At some point, someone in that group opened fire on the vehicle, striking it multiple times and striking the child who was inside. The driver then drove to Atlanta Medical Center for help,” police said in a statement.
Secoreia was pronounced dead at the hospital. She is the third Black child to die at the hands of BLM activists. Two Black teenagers, ages 16 and 17, were killed at an occupied zone in Seattle, Washington last month. Police have no suspects.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms lashed out at Secoreia’s killer on Sunday night, as angry residents called for her to resign.
“You cant blame this on a police officer. You can’t say this about criminal justice reform,” Bottoms said. “This is about some people carrying some weapons who shot up a car with an 8-year-old baby in the car for what?!?
“Enough is enough,” Bottoms continued. “If you want people to take us seriously and you don’t want us to lose this movement, we can’t lose each other.”
Mayor Bottoms said there were at least 2 shooters. “I am just asking you to please honor this baby’s life,” Bottoms said. “If you know who did this, please turn them in. These people are a danger to all of us.”
She said police will clear the occupied zone on University Avenue and protesters will be arrested if they resist.
“A the point that an 8-year-old baby is killed, the discussions have ended,” Bottoms said on Sunday.
But residents say her actions are too little, too late. Atlanta has seen more than 75 shootings in the past 30 days.
On Friday, July 3, Chicago Mayor detailed her crime prevention plans to prevent a third weekend of deadly shootings in her city.
“The best way to reduce violence is to prevent it from happening,” CPD Supt. David Brown said Friday. “We will be targeting criminal networks that are the pipeline to violence in this city over this 4th of July weekend.”
Lightfoot agreed with Brown’s decision to sweep the children off the corners. Drug dealers routinely use children to sell their narcotics. But the ACLU criticized the mayor’s plan to sweep the corners, saying the plan violated the children’s rights.
“If any civil liberties group has a problem with people who are killing our people over drug spots, let’s have a conversation because you need to have your attitude readjusted,” Lightfoot said.
She told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on Thursday that crime occurs in neighborhoods where people lose hope, lacking access to jobs, health care and education.
Lightfoot also attacked President Trump for criticizing her response to the crime spree, saying Trump shows no leadership, and has never called her to ask what he can do to help.
