Losing children to violence

By: Aliza AppelbaumThe news: During the 2006-2007 school year, 32 Chicago public school students were killed.

Behind the news: Chicago has led the nation in youth murders the past several years.

Between 2000 and 2005, the Chicago Police Department reported 375 murders or manslaughters of people younger than 18—more than any other police department in America—according to The Chicago Reporter’s analysis of data compiled by the FBI.

Chicago was home to more youth murders during that span than both Los Angeles, with 357, and New York, with 307, even though both of those cities are larger than Chicago.

While none of last school year’s 32 student deaths occurred on school property, Chicago Public Schools will boost security—adding more cameras and metal detectors—and provide better training for security officers this year, said schools spokesman Michael Vaughn, adding that the school system will spend close to $56 million this year on security.

“We’re very diligent and very thorough about screening the kids when they come to school and they are disciplined if they are found with weapons of any kind,” Vaughn said. “Working with kids, trying to solve these problems and prevent more violence, that’s what we’re trying to do, particularly at the high school level.”

Parents also want to see an end to the youth murders.

“It’s just heartbreaking over and over, and you never really heal from that,” said Annette Nance-Holt, a fire captain in Chicago who lost her 16-year-old son, Blair, when he was shot and killed on a bus in May 2007 when the shooter missed his intended target.

“A lot of the parents who have lost their children to violence, we’ve banded together,” Holt said. “We’re sick and tired of this, and something has to change.”