Chicago's streets were marred with gun violence over the Thanksgiving weekend, as city-wide shootings left at least one person dead and 24 others injured. The spate of shootings affected individuals ranging from a teenager to a septuagenarian, reflecting the indiscriminate nature of the city's enduring crisis.
According to ABC7 Chicago, amongst the injured was a 16-year-old boy who was shot multiple times Saturday afternoon in the Little Village neighborhood. The young victim self-transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in a serious condition. In a separate incident, a liquor store employee in Irving Park was shot by masked assailants during an attempted heist. The employee, a 46-year-old man, is expected to survive the shoulder wound.
Adding to the grim toll, CBS Chicago reported a fatal shooting on West 63rd Street, where a 27-year-old man was struck in the head and body, later pronounced dead at Christ Hospital. The violence spilled over to the areas near the United Center, where five teens were shot after midnight on Thursday. This includes a 15-year-old boy taken to Lurie Children's Hospital in good condition with a gunshot wound to the left leg as well as two 16-year-olds and two 18-year-olds who were treated for their injuries at Stroger Hospital.
As families across the nation were giving thanks, others were caught in the line of gunfire. The 30-year-old woman wounded in the arm by a shooting on North Washtenaw Avenue became another statistic in the city's ledger of violence. Over the same weekend, a 21-year-old man was shot in the rear near South Burnham Avenue and was listed in fair condition at U of C Hospital, "We're taxpayers. Don't we have a say so? Can't we roam freely with our phones without getting robbed at the train, or out in the street?" Angel Rivera, a local resident and customer of the targeted liquor store, told ABC7.
As investigations continue, Chicago Police have made no arrests in connection to these shootings. The liquor store owner has turned over surveillance footage to the authorities, hopeful for a break in the case against the two masked robbers responsible for the injury of his employee. Customers and neighbors, like Dan Salazar who lives near the store, are left in a state of unease: "I don't have one, but I guess, security cameras will probably be the next thing to do. That might be next, possibly, even moving out of the area, as well," Salazar expressed to ABC7 Chicago.
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