On Friday, President Obama spoke at the Hyde Park Career Academy high school in Chicago pleading for lawmakers to pass common sense legislation on gun control. Hours later, the sister of a teen who sat behind Obama during his speech fell victim to the gun violence epidemic in Chicago that killed 65 other children last year.
The victim, 18-year-old Janay McFarlane, was killed by a gunshot wound to the head. Her 14-year old sister Destiny is a student at the school that Obama visited.
McFarlane was a new mother to a three-month-year-old son and she planned to graduate from high school in the spring. "I'm just really, truly just trying to process it, knowing that I'm not taking my baby home any more," said the victim's mother Angela Blakely.
During his speech, Obama called for tighter gun control to get illegal firearms off the streets while highlighting Chicago's gun violence epidemic.
"There was something profound and uniquely heartbreaking and tragic, obviously, about a group of 6-year-olds being killed," said the president on Friday. "But last year, there were 443 murders with a firearm on the streets of this city, and 65 of those victims were 18 and under. So that's the equivalent of a Newtown every four months. And that's precisely why the overwhelming majority of Americans are asking for some common-sense proposals to make it harder for criminals to get their hands on a gun," said Obama during his speech.
In addition, four separate shootings were reported in Chicago within the 90 minutes after Obama spoke.
The president also mentioned Hadiya Pendleton, the 15-year-old girl who was killed by stray gunfire in Chicago, just days after performing at his second inauguration, in his address.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
