Families call for end to violence at Warren event

Staff report

WARREN

Dozens of families gathered in Warren’s Packard Park on Sunday to memorialize Trayvon Martin and to call for an end to violence in Warren, the Mahoning Valley, the nation and the world.

“We want to send a message to stop the violence, stop the hate,” said Shabrea Lewis, a participant.

The event combined solemn tributes and serious calls for nonviolence in an atmosphere to attract young people that included a children’s jumping tent, games, cotton candy and Skittles candy.

Martin, the 17-year-old unarmed teenager shot and killed in Florida last month, was carrying a bag of Skittles and wearing a hooded sweat shirt when the gunfire erupted.

“Trayvon’s death is not about hoodies. It’s about the combination of a male, an African American and violence” against them, said Warren City Councilwoman Helen Rucker, an event speaker.

She added that police, city leaders and the community must all be held accountable toward preventing such violence.

Residents must stand up and “never condone inappropriate behavior in our communities,” she added.

She said as in Sanford, Warren residents have had their share of grievances against the city police department, including charges of brutality.

Rucker, however, said those relations have noticeably improved under the administration of Police Chief Tim Bowers and with the intervention of the U.S. Justice Department.

Sunday’s event also called attention to a tragedy affecting children last month in Warren: a house fire March 3 on Austin Avenue that killed two adults and two young girls.

Other scheduled participants in the event Sunday included radio personalities and Warren Mayor Doug Franklin.