Despite the State of Emergency, the only thing that Mayor Daley keeps movement on is new gun law reforms, but what does new gun laws alone have to do with addressing the desperate economic conditions facing our Black and urban communities? Why does the Mayor and others ask, and the media reports on "What Are The Solutions?" to gang violence, but reject proposals on specific and measurable recommendations. During Rev. Al Sharpton's recent National Convention and launching of his 12 Month National Action Plan, ex-offenders and those who represent at-risk youth and adults across the country identified a specific and measurable project that is worth the investment on the front side than investing on the backside with calls for The National Guard.!!

Ex-offenders admitted that over the years illegal local jobs and business were created by gangs and others who had used vacant lots in Black and other urban communities to grow and market marijuana, but with the Obama administrations commitmnent to Green Jobs that these communities could now create legal jobs this summer by growing and marketing community gardens. Local groups representing ex-offenders, at-risk yourth and adults have created proper non profit community organizations with 501C3 status, and they have received proper Certification for Green Job creation and they have hundreds of people ready to be employed this summer with Green Jobs through the community gardens, but The Mayor, Governor and others have not acknowledged this solid proposal and how to identify the public and private resources for the proper funding.

How can we keep saying that we want to stop the increase in summer violence yet cannot publicly deal with a proposal that those at-risk have identified as one effort that can keep them from being drawn into the illegal avenues and potential violence and more death? I'm going to keep increasing my public appeals to our respective leaders to publicly challenge the Mayor and others to deal with this State of Emergency. Remember we had increased police pressnce when Chicago was STILL The Murder Capital Of The World, so we cannot afford to just allow the Mayor to detract us in supporting new gun laws alone without having him deal with addressing the desperate economic environments our communities still face this summer.

I guess each summer I am always reminded of the lives I have seen lost from some good people getting hurt and killed caught up in trying to make ends meet from the streets, and to look at them in caskets and remembering your last conversation with them was their desperate appeals for any kind of legal work to get them off the streets. We are surely in for a deadly summer if all we are going to do is fight for issues that do not deal with the desperate economic conditions. No amount of police deployment can overcome this desperation in the streets.

I'm curious when I currently see some of our religious, civic, and poltical leaders lobbying various levels of government on important issues, except a dangerous silence on The State Of Emergency as it relates to the desperate economic conditions and the lack of enough legal jobs this summer.

The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Father Michael Pfleger and recently Congresman Bobby Rush publicly spoke out against the use of our money for The National Guard, but for use in creating new legal jobs that will keep those at-risk from violence. We should be breaking ground on these empty lots and Green job creating by June so time is of the essence but it's dangerous, this current level of silence.