CLEVELAND — The Greater Cleveland United Pastors in Mission held a news conference Tuesday morning at 11 a.m. to speak out against the recent wave of violence in the city.
So far this year, there have been 101 homicides in Cleveland, 967 robberies and 1,608 assaults, according to Cleveland Police.
Watch a replay of the news conference below:
The news conference was held at the Antioch Baptist Church on Cedar Avenue in Cleveland. The pastors who spoke included:
- The Rev. Dr. Otis Moss, Jr., Pastor Emeritus of Olivet Church.
- The Rev. Dr. E.T. Caviness, Pastor of Greater Abyssinia Baptist Church.
- Rev. Dr. Larry Macon, Sr., Pastor of Mt. Zion Church.
- Pastor Tony Minor, Senior Pastor of Community of Faith Church.
- Rev. Jimmy Gates, Pastor of Cleveland’s Zion Hill Missionary Church.
A news release announcing the conference states:
"The city of Cleveland is becoming and recently had one of the most violent weekends in several years. More than 24 people were shot, and 4 killed as Cleveland experienced another violent weekend. There are too many guns on the streets, and too many people with criminal records on the streets. There is also a shortage of values about what is right, what is wrong, what is acceptable, what should be condoned, and what is condemned. We want the Mayor & City Council to re-engage."
The pastors emphasized legislating proper gun laws and encouraged the community to vote, beginning with the August Special Election.
"I got calls from pastors, members across the city saying we need our pastors to speak out as well. So we decided to come together and try to help in this situation," said Pastor Larry Macon
The pastors and preachers see all the effects of violence on their community members and feel their concerns in their churches.
"People are afraid to come to church day or night now. So they're not attending like they used to because they're afraid to even walk out of their houses," Macon said.
Faith leaders said they've been working on a plan to find ways to be active and heal the community. That includes teaching people to become violence interrupters, creating access to community health workers and teaching practical tips on crisis response.
"We're here not to just simply say that we ought to pray, but we're here to also say that we're going to think through some very practical evidence-based responses to do our part in trying to address this issue," said Bishop Tony Minor.
They said what they need to make it successful is the help of every community member.
Cleveland City Council President and Ward 6 representative Blaine Griffin said, "At the end of the day, we also got to recognize that who is the real issue and the real problem that we're trying to solve. And to me, that's violent crime."
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