Violence Mars Holiday Weekend

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 5, 2011 1:30PM

With the holiday weekend behind us, the tally of people killed or injured in violent incidents since Friday afternoon continues to increase. As of early this morning, Five men were killed and at least 23 injured in shootings or stabbings since Friday afternoon. Chicago Breaking News reports a teen found fatally shot in Roseland last night; a man critically wounded in a shooting near Cabrini-Green's row houses; and a teen is in critical condition in a shooting in Bronzeville this morning.

What's garnering national headlines is the video of a mob attack in Boystown in which a 25-year-old was beaten and stabbed on Halsted near Aldine. It's the latest in a series of violent incidents happening in that area. The "Take Back Boystown" Facebook page has been awash with heated commentary in the wake of the video going viral regarding "those people," and they aren't talking about the LGBT community.

A Saturday protest of the Boystown violence advertised on the ""Take Back Boystown" Facebook page ran into a counter-protest by a smaller group of queer youth activists, accusing the larger group of trying to force queer youth out of the neighborhood and trying to frame the attacks in terms of race.

44th Ward Ald. Tom Tunney called Saturday's assault an "isolated incident," which didn't go over well with residents concerned about the violence. It should make for an interesting CAPS meeting in Boystown tomorrow night.