We can add two more to Chicago’s never-ending list of victims of gun violence this summer.
Little Khalise Weatherspoon was playing on a scooter on her front lawn just before 5pm Monday evening, when two men burst out of an alley and opened fire.
Weatherspoon, who had celebrated her fourth birthday just a few days before, was shot in the stomach. A 31-year-old man was also hit in the buttocks. The two were quickly rushed to the hospital.
The police have yet to take anyone into custody, but it appears the intended target was a gang member who is a part of Weatherspoon’s family. She is the latest in a long line of children to have been caught in gang rivalry crossfire this summer.
Her family gathered at the hospital and shared their anger and hurt with reporters. Richard Spires, her grandfather, said:
“She was just outside playing with some of my other grandkids, in front of their house, for God’s sake,” before blasting gun laws as well.
“The shooting these guys are doing is just ridiculous. The people getting shot are the innocent people like my grandchild. And the government is now allowing this concealed carry mess. They might as well open it up and say it’s the OK Corral.”
Weatherspoon’s neighbor, Bamani Obadele, heard the shooting and is similarly enraged:
“It’s high time that the black community get a grip. We’ve had summit after summit. We’ve had march after march. The reality is we know the people who are the potential shooters.”
We are wishing Khalise a speedy recovery.
SOURCE: HuffingtonPost
