Southwest Philadelphia community members gather for annual Peace Not Guns Festival to speak out against violence
It was a show of community unity on Saturday on Kingsessing Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia.
Dozens of people came together to promote a message of positivity at the annual Peace Not Guns Festival.
"If it's about taking the guns off the street, this is a good start," said resident Irma Moore.
Moore and her family attended the festival for the first time. She said she supports events like this because she believes in order to combat gun violence in this neighborhood, the responsibility can't solely fall on elected officials.
"It's going to take a village. Like when I grew up, I couldn't go past a certain light pole before my neighbor was calling my mom…that's how it's going to be combatted if the community comes together," she said.
At the festival, various resources were provided to community members, ranging from free food and baby products to trauma support services for people impacted by gun violence.
City Council President Kenyatta Johnson started the event.
He said it's important to him to uplift the community, especially following shootings, including last year's mass shooting near 60th and Kingsessing on July 4 that left one person dead and eight other people injured.
"We wanted to make sure that we show the community here in South Philadelphia...we saw not only one but two mass shootings that we are going to be here for them," Johnson said.
In an area that's lost so much to gun violence, this day proved it can never take away the community's love for one another.