Response to Highland Park Tragedy
The ICIRR family has been devastated and angered by the events in Highland Park this past Monday. Leaders with our member organization Mano a Mano Family Resource Center have lost relatives. We cannot imagine the pain that they and the entire community are enduring right now, and we mourn with them.
We specifically note that many of the victims are members of Highland Park’s thriving Latinx community. They, their families and neighbors need culturally and linguistically competent crisis relief services as they grapple with this horrible tragedy. Those who need immigrant friendly mental health resources can visit Mental Health Resources — The Coalition for Immigrant Mental Health (ourcimh.org).
We also note that a number of leaders of ICIRR member the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) are Highland Park residents, some of whom were at the parade. They witnessed the violence and are in community with those who died and suffered injuries on Monday. They are in our thoughts as they navigate the trauma from this horrific incident.
Mano a Mano is lifting up four Go Fund Me pages to offer support for the victims’ families who were part of the Mano-A-Mano Community.
JCUA’s synagogue partner Makom Solel Lakeside is holding a public vigil in Highland Park Wednesday, July 6, at 7:00 pm, at 1301 Clavey Rd, Highland Park, IL.
ICIRR stands alongside the many others who demand wrap-around solutions and policies that will address public safety and save lives by tackling both root causes and immediate necessary challenges that incidents like these far too often bring to light. Whether at a school near the border in Texas, a grocery store in upstate New York, a parade in Highland Park, or in disinvested neighborhoods throughout Chicago, our communities deserve safety for ALL.
We hold everyone impacted by Monday’s incident in our hearts as we continue to demand action and fight for our collective liberation.