Walking with a purpose: Stopping the violence in East Gainesville

Gainesville Police say they have not arrested anyone connected to two drive-by shootings last week. On Thursday, people filled East Gainesville's streets with a loud message.

It may not have been a large crowd at the beginning, but their message was clear. Gun violence has no place in Gainesville.

“This walk was basically to let the neighborhood and community know we’re here," said event organizer and Duval Community activist Boosie Foreman. "We’re gonna take back our streets. We want them to put the guns down and stop this gun violence.”

Foreman says the violence has gotten so out of hand it's interrupting how people regularly live their lives, with some even afraid to go on walks in the evening.

“We can’t sleep at night. We haven’t had this to where there are gunshots at night interrupting our sleep. It's getting bad. It's like happening every other week a parent is burying their child.”

City Commissioner Desmon Duncan-Walker was forefront at the march. She explained what it was like to walk the streets she lives with a message of peace.

“It was something amazing to walk down these streets, to see people coming out of their homes and blowing their horns in their cars. Understanding that this is about saving this. It's about making these streets safe again.”

Commissioner Duncan-Walker also says she’s already asked for a special meeting with her fellow commissioners on August 2nd to discuss how they can use city funds to get programs off the ground to give young people something productive to do.

“We’re going to be talking about this very special, serious issue and how we can allocate resources from ARP dollars to help save our community. it's very important.”

Foreman says they'll be walking in different communities every month, spreading the same message.