For the seventh year, downtown Lexington Saturday became the spot for a peace walk. The event provided an opportunity for the community to express concern about gun violence.
22-year-old Ricardo Franklin says gathering in Duncan Park is always about unity and peace and loving one another. He lost a brother, Antonio, to gun violence as an innocent bystander in that same park. His mother Anita, who started the peace walk event and worked passionately to see less youth violence, died last year. Ricardo said he’s always thinking of his mom and realizes there’s no easy way to end youth violence. “I don’t think there is just one answer, but I think there are several different answers. But, it all starts with community leaders and us coming together with our community members,” said Franklin
16-year-old Madelyn Tudor said there’s no cut-and-dried solution to youth violence. She saw the peace walk as a time to demonstrate unity. “I think this is a really good opportunity for law enforcement and the people of our community who have faced gun violence to come together,” said Tudor.
In addition to providing traffic control for the one-mile route, many law enforcement officers participated in the walk. In Duncan Park, participants heard from pastors and government leaders, as well as singing.
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