ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After a series of high-profile shootings in the St. Petersburg area, local politicians and civic leaders have joined forces to say "enough is enough."
On Saturday, they held another rally, this one at the corner of 34th Street and 18th Avenue South.
This time, the group of about 30 people waved signs and wore T-shirts reading “enough is enough” just days after a shootout that left a St. Pete police officer wounded, and the suspect dead.
“We are going to keep going. The community needs to be involved," St. Petersburg City Council Member Lisa Wheeler-Bowman said. “And we’re not gonna stop this time.”
Local leaders again called for an end to the city’s deadly rash of gun violence, and for those with information about those shootings to come forward.
“You cannot see something and not say something,” council member Deborah Figgs-Sanders said.
Three weeks ago, a stray bullet struck and killed 23-year-old Arnieceia Milton. Thanksgiving week three teenagers were wounded when gunfire erupted during what police say was likely an argument over drugs. And this past week, a St. Pete police officer was shot and wounded. The suspect was killed in a hail of gunfire.
“And I am immediately thinking, okay, can you just give us a minute to come together? But then, I realize, this is our reality,” Figgs-Sanders said.
Organizers say they were already planning Saturday’s demonstration before this week’s shooting. They joined other city leaders calling for calm as the investigation unfolds.
“I was afraid a riot was going to start, or something,” Wheeler-Bowman said. “I mean I was just praying for peace. I mean let all the facts come out. Let the investigation go on.”
Organizers are planning another rally sometime next week, and vow to hold at least one demonstration every month for the foreseeable future. They’re inviting not just the south St. Pete community, but everyone, to join their movement.
“And a lot of times we start and we don’t want to finish because we feel defeated, but you can’t give up. You can’t give up,” Figgs-Sanders pleaded.
“You know, there’s no reason we can’t all get along carrying the same message,” Wheeler-Bowman shared. “Enough is enough.”
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