Updated: Media Can't Get It Right On Chicago's Uptown Shooting on June 28

JJ Peppers in Uptown, scene of gunfire on July 28, 2013
(Screenshot from WGN TV video)

June 29, 2013 - UPDATED, 2:00 PM - Chicago media can't seem to get their story straight on yesterday's shooting in Chicago's north side Uptown neighborhood. Is the number of victims five, four or six? Were they all male or were some female? How many people were actually hit by gunfire in Uptown last night? 

The shooting happened by a JJ Peppers store in a strip mall around 7:15 PM on Friday at the intersection of N. Sheridan Road and W. Lawrence Avenue. Initial news reports said that five men were hit by gunfire, four critically wounded and one seriously.

Google search for "shooting uptown peppers wgn"

On WGN TV's 9PM newscast on Friday, however, Gaynor Hall reported from the shooting scene that police had amended the number of wounded down to four, all which were in "good condition."

WGN has since removed Hall's report and edited their story to reflect what other local media are saying: SIX people were wounded, two of which were female.

A Google search for "shooting uptown peppers wgn" finds a link to WGN's story, originally headlined "Four people shot outside Uptown strip mall."

That story today, however, has the edited headline "Six people shot outside Uptown strip mall," but still has this URL: http://wgntv.com/2013/06/29/five-people-shot-on-uptown-street-corner/

NBC5's story, screenshot at 3:00 PM, June 29, 2013

Laughably, NBC5 has a story headline that is non-committal: "Several Wounded in Uptown Shooting." NBC updated their story at 10:30 last night to say that "A police department spokesman said four were injured, adding that they were four males of unknown ages."

That's what Gaynor Hall reported for WGN. NBC has apparently not felt it necessary to update their story.

Some of the blame for this confusion should probably go the the Chicago Police Department for giving out bad information to the media.

Previous Reports, Friday, June 28:

UPDATED 10: 30 PM - Four  men were hit by gunfire this evening around 7:15 PM in the Uptown neighborhood on the city's north side.

NBC5 tweet from June 28, 2013: "5 wounded, 4 critically"

WGN TV is reporting late tonight that the Chicago Police say the number of those hit was actually four. WGN quotes police officials as saying that all four victims are in good condition at Illinois Masonic and St. Francis hospitals.

The shooting happened in front of the JJ Peppers convenience store in a strip mall at the intersection of N. Sheridan Road and W. Lawrence Avenue. It's a particularly rough part of a very rough neighborhood, just  one block east of the Aragon Entertainment Center.Two people were shot at the same location on June 10. The shooting happened even as a "positive loitering" event was taking place across the street (see below).

NBC5 Chicago reported that "Shots rang out at about 7:15 p.m. in the 4800 block of North Sheridan Road, a fire department spokesperson said. Five ambulances responded to the scene. Four people were critically wounded and one person was in serious condition, the spokesperson said." NBC notes that the story is still developing.

ABC7 Chicago said that all victims are male. "Four people were critically wounded and one person was in serious condition, Fire Media Affairs said. Two males were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center and two males were taken to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, police News Affairs Officer Daniel O'Brien said."

Uptown Update had a first-hand report, published at 8:50 PM. Their lead story until then, ironically, was about another useless "positive loitering" event from 7-8 pm, at the southwest corner of Lawrence and Sheridan, just inches from a shooting that "positive loitering" is supposed to prevent. The shooting, in front of JJ Peppers, is at the northwest corner of the intersection.

Also See: Uptown's Positive Loiterers: Useless Chicago News Bench

Bullet Hits Popular Coffee House in Rogers Park, Chicago

Common Cup - Chicago News Bench file photo

May 11, 2013 - An apparent drive-by shooting today has shaken up a quiet coffee shop on Chicago's far northeast side. Gunshots were fired around 12:30 p.m. today in the 1500 block of W. Morse Avenue in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood today. An excellent report at Chicago News Report says that "an investigating officer discovered a bullet hole in a window at 1501 West Morse." That's where Common Cup coffee house sits on the southwest corner of Morse and N. Greenview.

The CNR report noted that a woman was walking along Morse Avenue "when she heard gunshots behind her… when she turned around, a black sedan zoomed passed her, said authorities. Another eyewitness saw a silver car and two black males flee the area of the shooting. One male was limping… possibly, from an injury sustained in the shooting. The limping suspect was last seen going into a gangway near 1443 West Morse, said police."

An update to the CNR report said police were looking at an abandoned vehicle, in which they found shell casings. "Authorities believe the car was used in the Morse Avenue shooting," said CNR.

Also See:

• Common Cup Drive By Shooting Chevanston Rogers Park
• Coffee Bean And Tea Leaf Beverage Capsule Carousel (Google Affiliate Ad)

Cook County Sheriff Uncovers Gang Plot to Kill Cops

May 10, 2013 - A Chicago gang allegedly sent out a hit order to kill law enforcement officers, according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Intelligence unit.

"The deadly order," reported Michael Sneed at the Sun-Times,  "came via the Cook County Jail grapevine" and "claims the leadership of the Satan Disciples street gang has called for the formation of an assassination unit entitled the 'Guerilla Mafia Cartel' which would be assigned the deadly mission."

The sheriff’s department shared the alert with 132 Cook County municipalities, including the Chicago Police Department, and also the FBI. “This information is raw and very preliminary,” said a top Chicago police source. “But it is better to be safe than sorry.” More at the Sun-Times.

According to the National Gang Crime Research Center, the Satan's Disciples (SD's) have operations in most of Chicago's surrounding suburbs. They also have a far-reaching national presence. The SD's have been around for 30 years and "are a predominantly Hispanic gang originating from Chicago. The gang is a 'Folks' gang, and uses therefore the six-pointed star in some of its graffiti, but almost always accentuated with its unique trademark of 'Devil' images. It typifies many of the older traditional Chicago-based gangs in respect to being basically an adult-run criminal enterprise that makes extensive use of juveniles in its drug distribution operations. Unlike the majority of those gangs, it has now spread to over 40 Chicago suburbs as well as to 22 other states. It is, therefore, a big player in the American gang crime scene."

Suspect Detained After Multiple Shots Fired In Uptown, Chicago

EXCLUSIVE: Chicago police detained a suspect in a multiple shots fired case early this morning on the North Side. They got him in less than 30 minutes after receiving a number of panicked 911 calls. Here is our real time report, written as we heard it live on the police scanner: 1:55 A.M., September 4, 2010 - Multiple 911 calls reporting 8 or 9 shots fired, initially thought to be near near W. Lawrence and N. Malden in Uptown... DEVELOPING... At 2:04 A.M.: A police unit called in to tell dispatch that civilian has two bullet holes in their Chevy Caprice at W. Leland and N. Magnolia. That's one block north of Truman College (map). Shots now considered bona fide. Police searching for shell casings at this intersection. Suspect at large. Description of suspect: 5' 10", 150 pounds, male Black, "has a large caliber gun," "carmel complexion," blue visor, white stripes on arms of his blue jacket, blue jeans. At 2:13 A.M.: Suspect thought to be hiding in an alley off of 4400 block of N. Clifton (map), just south of Truman College. Dispatch calls for "saturation team" to respond. 2:18 A.M.: Unit calls in, says nothing found in that alley. Other units continuing search on N. Clifton. 2:21 A.M: Unit calls in, "Possible suspect matching description walking eastbound on Wilson at Racine." 2:22 A.M.: Suspect in custody at 1211 W. Lawrence Avenue (map).

Drug Cartel Suspected In Execution-Style Garage Shooting on Chicago's South Side

September 3, 2010 - Four men were found shot in a garage in Chicago's south side Lawndale neighborhood last night. Three were dead when discovered; one died later in hospital. Today, the media is catching up to us on this story that we first broke last night at 8:55 p.m. The Chicago Sun-Times says that "Police discovered four males inside a garage in the 6100 block of South Kildare Avenue about 8:30 p.m., said police News Affairs Officer Hector Alfaro, citing preliminary information. Sources said all four were shot." ... Actually, the four dead men were first discovered by the wife of one of the victims. The police did not discover them. A police source told Chicago News Bench last night that the dead men were found by a woman in a residential garage - that woman is the wife of one of the slain men. The Sun-Times report did reveal, however, that one of the victims was still alive when the police arrived. He died later at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. Oddly, the Sun-Times made no mention of the fact that all four men have Spanish surnames and that Mexican drug cartel involvement is strongly suspected by the CPD (we did). The Chicago Tribune has a good report today (posted at 2:45 p.m.). The actually name the victims (all Spanish surnames, as we reported last night). Oddly, the Tribune's otherwise excellent report made no mention of the fact that Mexican drug cartel involvement is strongly suspected by the CPD (we did). The Southtown Star reports that "Dead on the scene were Noel Casares, 25; Roberto Rivera, 30; and Alonzo Pena, who is believed to be in his 30s, according to police and the Cook County medical examiner's office. A fourth man, Louis Santillian, 30, suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at 11:01 p.m. at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn." Oddly, the Southtown Star made no mention of the fact that all four men have Spanish surnames and that Mexican drug cartel involvement is strongly suspected by the CPD (we did). A sister-in-law of one of Alonzo Pena is quoted by the Trib as saying, "As far as I know he wasn't involved with drugs." What does that mean? Nothing, of course. The Trib also noted that police say "multiple weapons" were found at the scene. Did the sister-in-law know about that? The Trib also paraphrased the sister-in-law as saying that "a good father who was around for family gatherings and barbecues where the children would play with cousins." (Again, meaningless. Tony Soprano could be described in the same way.) CBS2 posted a story at 6:12 a.m. today that they took from the Sun-Times Media Wire. Oddly, CBS2 made no mention of the fact that all four men have Spanish surnames and that Mexican drug cartel involvement is strongly suspected by the CPD (we did). FoxNews posted a story at 10:00 a.m. today. Oddly, FoxNews made no mention of the fact that all four men have Spanish surnames and that Mexican drug cartel involvement is strongly suspected by the CPD (we did). RELATED: Breaking news-4 shot dead less than a mile from Midway Airport!!! 6100 south Kildare

Four Shot Dead Execution Style in Garage (Updated)

EXCLUSIVE - September 2, 2010 - 8:55 PM - Chicago police are investigating the murders of four people on Chicago's south side. The bodies were discovered in a garage in the 6100 block of S. Kildare Avenue (map), a residential neighborhood less than a mile east of Midway Airport. The bodies, all bound with duct tape, were discovered when the wife of one of the victims entered their garage. Insiders tell Chicago News Bench that police currently have "no info on offenders," but that they suspect "Mexican drug cartel" involvement. All of the victims have Spanish surnames. ALSO SEE: Drug Cartel Suspected In Execution-Style Garage Shooting on Chicago's South Side

7 Wounded, 1 Dead in Shootings on Chicago's South Side

July 20, 2010 - Last night, Chicago police were involved in four separate gunfights on the South Side and in the Little Village neighborhood (map). There were at least four shooting incidents (as you'll read below). All together, at least seven people were struck by gunfire (no police officers) with at least one dead. A CPD officer who I know was involved with two of the incidents. He phoned me on his way home at 10:20 p.m. and said he was involved with the 9:00 p.m. incidents in the 6300 block of South Vernon (map) and the one in the Back of the Yards neighborhood (map). He said the police had to pull out their rifles for these. My friend told me that he personally saw five bad guys get shot, one of whom he saw die at the scene, not later in the hospital as reported by the Chicago Tribune. Exclusive: My officer friend was involved with incidents One and Two, detailed below. What my officer friend told me, and what the Chicago Tribune story below does not tell you, is that police went to the 6300 block of South Vernon to quell a fight between two gangs, and the gangs then turned their fire on the police. So, with that extra tidbit from us exclusively, here's what the Trib reported late Monday night: Incident #One, 9:00 PM: In the most recent shooting, four men were shot in the West Woodlawn neighborhood, officials said. The shootings occurred on the 6300 block of South Vernon Avenue at about 9 p.m., said Chicago Fire Department spokesman Quention Curtis. (Editor's Note: My CPD officer friend said this happened in Englewood.) Incident #Two, 9:00 PM: In the Back of the Yards neighborhood, at about the same time, one person was reported shot on the 5100 block of South May Street, said Curtis. A spokesman for the Cook County medical examiner's office said they were notified of a shooting death at that address. The victim was taken in serious-to-critical condition to Stroger Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. (Editor's Note: My CPD officer friend was involved in this one, too, but he said he saw the victim die on the scene.) Incident #Three, 10:30 PM: About 10:30 p.m. in the Englewood neighborhood, a 17-year-old boy was shot in the 6800 block of South Justine Street. He was taken in serious-to-critical condition to Stroger Hospital, said Curtis. (Editor's Note: By this time, my CPD officer friend was pulling into his driveway at home.) Incident #Four, 7:13 PM: ....two 18-year-old men were shot in the Little Village neighborhood.... [They were shot] on the street on the 2100 block of South Spaulding Avenue at 7:13 p.m. .... Hey Chicago, how's that new restrictive handgun ordinance working out for ya? It sure has made the streets safer, hasn't it? That Mayor Daley and his City Clowncil are friggin' geniuses, ain't they?

Was Murdered Chicago Cop Assassinated?

Was the murder of CPD Officer Michael R. Bailey this morning a hit? Was he assassinated? A lot of Chicago cops seem to think so. Several uniformed CPD officers were working the Windy City RibFest in Uptown this evening. I approached the group of seven. "I'm sorry to hear about the death of Officer Bailey," I said. "Thank you," three of them said simultaneously. Their gazes suddenly changed from suspicious anticipation to relaxed comraderie. Cops, after all, are more accustomed to taking verbal abuse than getting sympathy from a stranger on the street. "It's pretty weird that those guys chose a uniformed officer as a target in broad daylight," I said. They all nodded. All eyes were on me. "I don't think it was attempted robbery. They didn't want his car or his wallet," I said, "I think it was a hit. Officer Bailey, I think, was targeted for assassination." Seven nodding heads. "A lot of us think so too," one of the cops said. By "us," he didn't mean the officers standing there in front me. He meant "us" in the bigger sense. He was including all officers in the Chicago Police Department in "us." I have not seen this theory floated anywhere else - yet. Keep your eyes open, officers everywhere, and may God protect you all.

Chicago's Deadly Streets - An Incredible Report From ABC7

WLS TV reporter Chuck Goudie filed this stunning video on May 5. He spent a night prowling the streets of Chicago's Gresham police district, 10 miles due south of Chicago's Loop to see just how dangerous the hood really is. Mayor Richard Daley must hate this report. As Goudy noted in his report, "And despite Mayor Daley's disquieting photo op last week, his own police department's statistics show that in 2008, 77 percent of all city murders were committed with handguns that are already banned."


Goudie also wrote, "One hundred and twenty four people have been killed so far in 2010 - one per day - nearly the number of Americans killed during the same period in Iraq and Afghanistan combined." Nice work, Mayor Daley. Good job, Supt. Weis.

Also see: Chicago's Pointless Handgun Ban - Why draconian gun control laws never work Reason.com

Two Suspects Held in Uptown Shooting of Feb. 25, 2010

Feb. 26, 2010 - Two men are in police custody for an afternoon shooting that occurred on Chicago's north side on Thursday that left a South Side woman wounded. At about 4:15 p.m. five or six gunshots were fired during the busy afternoon commute at Wilson and Broadway in Uptown. Some people say they heard five shots, some say six.

Dontaneous Salley (right), 22, of the 4400 block of N. Racine and Jeremiah Moore (left), 20, of the 800 block of W. Sunnyside Avenue, were each charged with one count of aggravated battery with a firearm early Saturday morning. Both addresses are in zip code 60640 and in Chicago's 46th Aldermanic Ward.

Lake Effect News reports tonight that "witnesses told police that a man holding a gun at his side approached a small crowd of men and began firing at them. One of the bullets struck a 21-year-old woman in her thigh as she waited with her baby at the CTA bus stop at 1110 W. Wilson. Police picked up two men, ages 22 and 20, moments after the shooting and are holding them in police custody as the investigation continues. The men have not yet been charged as of Friday afternoon." 

LEN also notes that police say the suspects are members of the Conservative Vice Lords gang. They were taken into custody at Wilson and Sheridan, just two blocks east of Wilson and Broadway. Police recovered shell casings at 4601 N. Broadway.

Update with Photos of Broadway Wilson Shooting

UPDATE, FEB. 26: Two Suspects Held in Uptown Shooting of Feb. 25 February 25, 2010 - At approximately 4:17 p.m., at least two people were shot at a crowded intersection in Helen Shiller's 46th Ward of Uptown. More photos below. A young woman, standing with a number of other people at a bus stop, took a bullet in her leg as she stood across the street from Truman College in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood this afternoon. Her infant, next to her in a stroller, was unharmed. The woman's lost a lost of blood immediately, and standersby applied clothing and cloth to her to stem the bleeding. A friend of the woman, with her at the bus stop at the time of the shooting, took custody of the baby as fast-responding paramedics took her to Illinois Masonic hospital. According to police scanner chatter, and from I overheard on the scene from police officers, the woman is African-American and "late teens or early twenties." She was reportedly in stable condition. The woman seems to have been an innocent bystander who got caught in yet another gang-related shooting in Uptown near the intersection of N. Broadway and W. Wilson, half a block north of Alderman Shiller's ward service office. At least five shots were fired this afternoon. Click map and images to enlarge The shots originated from the northeast corner of the intersection and traveled westward, across Broadway, where at least one bullet struck the young woman, who stood about 20 yards west of the northwest corner. Police radio chatter said that "six casings" were found at 4601 N. Broadway, in front of City Sports clothing store. I saw five casings when I arrived on scene. The second shooting victim, a male, also suffered a leg wound. Police, on their radio frequency, said that he jumped into an SUV which reportedly drove west from the shooting scene. It is unknown at this time whether the second victim was a standerby or a participant in the violence. Lorraine Swanson reported this evening that "a source" called her and said "that a student from Uplift High School called the 23rd Police District to say that the Vice Lords and Gangster Disciples were going to fight on Broadway between Montrose and Wilson." At approximately 3:30 p.m., wrote Swanson, the same source called again and said that police had broken up a rival gang fight near Wilson and Broadway. It is not known at this time whether there is a connection between the gang fight at 3:30 and the shooting at 4:17. RELATED: Woman Shot at Wilson and Broadway - Lake Effect News Leave a Comment * Conservative T-Shirts * Follow CNB on Twitter * RSS Feed

Two Shot in Chicago's Uptown Neighborhood (Updated)

UPDATE, FEB. 26: Two Suspects Held in Uptown Shooting of Feb. 25 by Lorraine Swanson and Tom Mannis A woman described by police as "late teens or early twenties" was shot at approximately 4:17 p.m. Thursday beneath the L tracks at W. Wilson and N. Broadway (60640). She suffered at least one bullet to a leg. CFD paramedics transferred her to Illinois Masonic Hospital in stable condition. This much is known so far, according to police scanner calls. The following is based largely on posts to Twitter ("tweets") by Tom Mannis at twitter.com/ChiNewsBench, who tweeted what he heard on the police scanner in real time immediately after the shooting at 4:17 p.m. until 4:52 p.m.

• At 3 p.m., a source called L. Swanson to say that a student from Uplift High School called the 23rd Police District to say that the Vice Lords and Gangster Disciples were going to fight on Broadway between Montrose and Wilson.
• At approximately 3:30 p.m. the same source called L. Swanson again and said that police had broken up a rival gang fight near Wilson and Broadway.
• Shots were heard at approximately 4:17 p.m. (tweet)
• 4:25 p.m., police scanner calls reported that a man was down at Wilson and Broadway.(tweet)
• 4:27 p.m. person down at Wilson and Broadway. (tweet)
• 4:30 p.m., a report came in that a female victim was down at Wilson and Broadway. Female was reported shot in the leg. (tweet)
• Crowd gathering at 4:33 p.m. beneath the L tracks on Wilson, at Wilson and Broadway. (tweet)
• 4:35 p.m. two on the ground, arrested, at Wilson & Sheridan... ANOTHER victim was picked up in a dark SUV, fled west... (tweet)
• 4:37 p.m. Second victim was reported picked up in a dark SUV, fled westbound, also shot in leg. Black blazer, with Wisconsin license plates. (tweet)
• 4:38 p.m. Police looking for weapons on N. Broadway, near intersection with Wilson. Needing crowd control. (tweet)
• 4:40 p.m. Shooters were at 4601 N Broadway, east side of street, shell casings found there... still looking for weapon/s. (tweet)
• 4:41 p.m. Cops calling for more crime scene tape. (tweet)
• 4:45 p.m. Six shell casings found at 4601 N. Broadway. (tweet)
• 4:47 p.m. Another witness now standing by to look at suspects being brought to scene of shooting... (tweet)
• 4:48 p.m. Female shooting victim taken to Illinois Masonic Hospital. (tweet)
• 5:00 p.m. Helicopters hovering over Uptown. (tweet)
• 5:21 p.m. Three suspects have been taken to Area 3 at Belmont and Western. (Heard by L. Swanson on police scanner)

Lake Effect News and Chicago News Bench will continue to update this story as more information becomes available. Watch for more photos later this evening... Leave a Comment * Conservative T-Shirts * Follow CNB on Twitter * RSS Feed

UPTOWN - SHOTS FIRED, ONE WOMAN SHOT IN LEG

UPDATE, FEB. 26: Two Suspects Held in Uptown Shooting of Feb. 25 FEB. 25, 2010, 4:17 PM - WOMAN SHOT IN LEG, AMBULANCE ROLLING You could have followed this on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ChiNewsBench Leave a Comment * Conservative T-Shirts * Follow CNB on Twitter * RSS Feed

UPDATED - UPTOWN SHOOTING, SHERIDAN AND LELAND, CHICAGO

FIRST PUBLISHED at 10:37 p.m.; UPDATED, 11:59 p.m., Nov. 8: Another Uptown Shooting Not Thwarted by Positive Loitering SUNDAY NIGHT SHOOTING IN UPTOWN, CHICAGO From ChiNewsBench on Twitter (most recent post on top): Shell casings found 4731 N Sheridan Rd, Chicago - 10:41 PM LIVE ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - WERE FIRING FROM SHERIDAN AND LAKESIDE, APPROX. 10:10 PM ... #police #uptown #chicago #crimeless than 5 seconds ago LIVE ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - 1000 block W. Leland, looking for casings - recovered offender's cell phone, Sheridan & Leland... LIVE ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - CPD now looking for casings - Footchase continues nearby... Prisoners in wagon ... LIVE ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - ONE GUN RECOVERED, ONE STILL MISSING... CPD COMBING #UPTOWN CHICAGO FOR SHOOTERS... LIVE ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - SHOOTER, 900 W. LAKESIDE, IN CUSTODY, MORE CPD ACTION @ 1000 BLOCK W LELAND ... HOT NIGHT LIVE ALERT - UPTOWN CHICAGO - SHOOTER IN ALERT UPTOWN CHICAGO - 850 W. Eastwood, CPD tac has one in custody. More CPD action on 900 block of Lakeside ... foot chase .. gun seized... Conservative Caps, Shirt and more! Leave a Comment - Chicago News Bench RSS Feed Visit us on Twitter!

More Savagery in Chicago, "Blood All Over the Street"

ANOTHER obscene act of violence in Chicago, City of Bloody Shoulders. This one happened in Edgewater, on Chicago's north side in the early hours of Monday, October 1. The 14-year old victim was beaten with a pipe. As with Derrion Albert, the 16-year old who was beaten to death last week on the south side, no firearms were involved. Another similarity: Both crimes happened in a city with very strict anti-gun laws.

Chicago Breaking News reports:

A 14-year-old boy was chased down a street in the Edgewater neighborhood this morning and hit with a pipe, fracturing his skull, according to police and witnesses.

While the boy underwent surgery at Children's Memorial Hospital, police canvassed the 6300 block of North Paulina for leads in the beating -- which came just a week after 16-year-old Derrion Albert was beaten to death on the Far South Side.

"He was covered in blood. Blood was all over the street," said the woman who called police to the scene. "It was all over his face, arms and coming down the back of his head." Full Story...

Conservative Caps, Shirt and more!
Leave a Comment - Chicago News Bench RSS Feed
Visit us on Twitter!

Derrion Albert, Killed by KKK Surrogates

Update: I received this kind note from reader "Trpy" in Santa Ana, California:
 "As an African American, I must say that was the best article I have read. If I were a Klan member, I would retire from active duty and just watch from the side lines."


The Ku Klux Klan couldn't have killed 16-year old Derrion Albert last week in Chicago any more effectively than the black kids who beat the life out of him.

Opinion by Tom Mannis
Chicago News Bench

Derrion is the young man who was beaten to death by a mob of bloodthirsty savages last Thursday near the Agape Community Center in the far southside Chicago neighborhood of Roseland. From all accounts, Derrion did nothing to provoke the vicious attack. Witnesses say he was merely passing by, in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Derrion was black. All of his attackers are black. No Klansmen were anywhere nearby.

Fools, and race baiters like Jesse Jackson, Sr. (I will not call him "reverend"), constantly scream about the Ku Klux Klan and their attacks on Black Americans. To listen to Jackson and his ilk, you might think that the KKK has millions of members and is killing Black Americans on a genocidal scale. This is simply not true, and the sad truth is that far more Blacks are murdered every year by fellow Blacks than the KKK is capable of.

Is the Klan omnipresent? Are they everywhere, hiding under your bed and behind every corner? Hardly. The Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish organization that is hated by the KKK, says that there are more than 40 different Klan groups exist, "many having multiple chapters.... including a few that boast a presence in a large number of states. There are over a hundred different Klan chapters around the country, with a combined strength of members and associates that may total around 5,000."

There are 50 states in the U.S. That means, if the ADL numbers are correct, that there is an average of only 100 KKK members per state. There are, on average, more violent gang members in any big city neighborhood than there are Klan members in an entire state.

I am in no way defending or apologizing for the KKK, a group that I consider to be vile and dangerous. We are right to be mindful of them, but the simple fact is that more Black Americans are killed by other Black Americans every month than the KKK kills in a decade.

Consider this: According to the US Department of Justice, 94% of black victims were killed by blacks from 1975 to 2005.

An excellent article by Marissa McGill at Examiner.com (Sept. 4, 2009) noted the ongoing crisis of "black on black" violence. She wrote:

Guns don’t kill people. PEOPLE kill people. What has warped our minds and diseased our souls to provoke us to take someone’s life away from them? Does the African American community suffer from that much hatred, insecurity, and pain that we must murder each other, like it’s nothing? I don’t want to use the term “violence” anymore. We have become numb to the word in our community. Let us call it what it really is: Attempted Self-Annihilation. (Full article)

She's right, in my opinion. However, plenty of murders are done without guns. Knives, fists, hands around a throat, and so on, including the wooden sticks that killed Derrion Albert. Regardless of the weapons used, the weapons did not make the decision to kill or maim.

Will Jesse Jackson and his posse ever rant about the vicious thugs who kill their black brothers and sisters, cousins and neighbors? Admittedly they have, but rarely. You're much more likely to hear the alarmist race baiters scream about the KKK (Jackson-speak for "whitey"). Would Jackson and his followers ever admit that Black Americans are killing more blacks than the KKK could even dream of killing?

Consider these "hate crime" numbers from the FBI:

In 2007, the FBI says there was a nationwide total of 9,006 "hate crime" offenses (source). That's total. Of that total, "Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter" totaled a whopping nine (9). Repeat: Nine "hate crime" killings in all of 2007. Other numbers include 1,116 aggravated assaults and 1,684 simple assaults, but remember that the 9,006 figure includes both violent and non-violent crimes (159 burglaries, for example). All 9.006 are categorized as "hate crimes."

Let's assume, for the sake of discussion, that all nine of the killings were done by Klansmen. Nine black people dead is a bad weekend in Chicago, and tragic to be sure, but it is hardly a nationwide genocidal effort by the KKK. Nobody would call nine killings "genocide," yet the race baiters would love for their simple-minded sycophants to keep on believing that the KKK is on a terrible mass-murder rampage, nationwide, every day. It just ain't so.

The beasts who murdered honor student Derrion Albert did what is done so tragically often in America: They killed an innocent young person, a kid with promise. They did the KKK's dirty work. They killed a black kid. They killed out of hate, but this crime will not be listed as a "hate crime." All of this shows the absurdity of even using the "hate crime" designation. Derrion Albert is dead, but no more dead than he would be today had his killers been drunk white Klansmen. He is no less dead for the fact that his attackers were of the same race.

Worried about the KKK? They're certainly a group that needs to be monitored, but these days they've got it easy. Unwitting surrogates do the killing for them, accomplishing more evil and mayhem in a single drunken Uptown weekend than the Klan ever could. The far bigger worry for Black Americans these days, however, is the black kid walking next to you on the playground. He's more likely to kill you than are the 100 or so Klansmen in your state.


RELATED:
References to "KKK" at redcounty.com

Conservative Hats & Shirts
Leave a Comment - Chicago News Bench RSS Feed
Visit us on Twitter!

Uptown Drive-by Shooting (UPDATED)

CPD officer removes crime scene tape, 8:30 pm 

Exclusive Photos of the Crime Scene 

UPDATE, Sept. 22: The victim was shot in the back while riding his bicycle on N. Magnolia Avenue. "Help me, help me, they’re trying to kill me,” the teen said (more at Lake Effect News).

A man was shot in the back just before 7:00 p.m. tonight on the usually-quiet 4700 block of N. Magnolia Avenue in the unusually violent Uptown neighborhood of Chicago.


Correction: CNB reported last night that witnesses said the shooter was on a bicycyle. Actually the victim the one riding a bike.

Police leave the scene, 8:30 p.m. 

The victim was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital and was reported to be in stable condition shortly after arrival.

The shooting occured in front of a residence at 4752 N. Magnolia, on the southwest corner of the intersection with busy W. Lawrence Avenue, about 200 feet from the Uptown Theater.

Photos by T.H.Mannis 

Another Uptown Gang Fight Video

Posted on August 29 by "cabdodger" on YouTube, the video below is clearly a gang fight in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood. The video is titled "Uptown Gang Fight -August 28, 2009." This is yet another gang fight in Alderwitch Helen Shiller's 46th Ward, just two weeks after, and half a block north of, Joe Gray's now-infamous riot video. At least two of the young men swing long objects (image, right), possibly golf clubs. The irony of these punks acting this way in front of Alternatives and Uptown Ministries, two of Helen Shiller's favored non-profits, is rich indeed. Aren't those kind of organizations supposed to be preventing this kind of activity rather than serving as passive back drops for it? Where were the overfunded Cease Fire miracle workers? See related articles under the video. Helen Shiller Wallows in Lies, Self-Pity Kicking Helen Shiller's Political Corpse Another Useless Public Safety Meeting Full Length Video of Ald. Helen Shiller Mob Chase, Press Conference, Olympics Cool Hats & Shirts for Cool Conservatives Leave a Comment... Chicago News Bench RSS Feed We're on Twitter...

Kicking Helen Shiller's Political Corpse

Chicago News Bench pronounced Helen Shiller's political career as dead in July, 2008. A recent video (below) seems to shovel dirt onto her figurative grave.

Shiller cannot win re-election in 2011. Okay, it might not be impossible. Maybe her dead career could be revived, but as unlikely as that is, it just seems less likely every day. Shiller has long been slow to respond to residents' questions, needs and safety concerns.

She has actively resisted police cameras at dangerous intersections, and she is known for her anti-CAPS attitude. The police in her ward can't stand Shiller, a fact that they conceal thinly. The following video was posted on August 13, 2009. It shows a street fight, something all too common in Uptown, but this video brings it home so frighteningly well that is has stirred an amazing groundswell reaction from residents of Shiller's ward. Shiller was booed at an open meeting on July 23, 2009.

Shiller is openly mocked for her bizarre desire to create an indoor fish farm. Combine this video with Shiller's humiliation on August 17, 2009 when she was chased by screaming constituents from Truman College to her car. If her career wasn't already dead, it most certainly is now. Uptown has a long memory.


Video: What a riot! from Joe Gray on Vimeo.

Uptown Updated - Chicago Crime Explosion

Sunday, May 24, 2009, 10:30 p.m. CDT - Turn on your scanners, kidz! It's a crazy night in Uptown Chicago (23rd Police District). Police chases, reports of gunshots, robbing and gangstaz tossing guns outa car windows. SEE UPDATE from Lake Effect News, 10:32 p.m. Happy Memorial Day, tuh alla y'all. Leave a Comment on our Guestbook! CommieBama Hats and More Chicago News Bench RSS Feed Follow ChiNewsBench on Twitter