Marching bands, colorful floats and flag twirlers lined West Chicago Avenue on Saturday morning for the 36th Annual Say No to Drugs & Violence Parade. Sponsored by the Arthur Lockhart Resource Institute nonprofit, the community celebration was attended by community leaders, Austin residents and legislators.
The event is the largest neighborhood parade on Chicago’s West Side. It also included a college and trade school resource fair, a scholarship presentation, food and entertainment, as well as a book bag and school supply giveaway and tables of local vendors.
Prior to the parade, volunteers and public officials spoke to those gathered at the parking lot of the Healing Temple Church at 4941 W. Chicago Ave. Lawmakers in attendance included 37th Ward Alderman Emma Mitts, 8th District Illinois State Rep. LaShawn K. Ford and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. It was also attended by officers from the Chicago Police Department’s 15th District and other community leaders.
Speakers advocated for a greater unity between the community’s residents with law enforcement.
“We have to put our arms around one another,” Mayor Johnson said. “It is going to take all of us to build a better, stronger, safer Chicago…We have a lot of work to be done, but we are already seeing transformation in our communities. We cannot allow outside forces to determine or dictate what we do for our own city, especially what we do for our own people.”
According to the Mayor’s Office Violence Reduction Dashboard, from Jan. 1 through July 26 Austin has seen a 20.6% decrease in homicide victimizations, dropping from 34 in 2023 for the same period to 27 in 2024. The same period comparison in Austin saw a 13.2% decrease in all shooting victimizations from 144 in 2023 to 125 in 2024.
The calls for unity in Austin came three weeks after Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman, was fatally shot in her Illinois home by now-fired Sangamon County Sheriff Deputy Sean Grayson. In recent years nationwide, Massey is one of several Black women who have been killed by law enforcement in their own home, including Breonna Taylor and Atatiana Jefferson. Massey’s killing has also drawn national attention and protest.
“This gathering represents the ongoing dialogue between this community and law enforcement,” Rep. Ford said in a press release. “This is an important annual community event, but the unnecessary and tragic murder of Sonya Massey especially reminds us this year of why we must engage and take meaningful, collective action.”
Dozens of people attended a “Justice for Sonya Massey” rally on Saturday in Chicago’s Federal Plaza. The protestors called on Congress to take legislative action on police reform. Demonstrators demanded lawmakers pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, a bill then U.S. Rep. Karen Bass (now mayor of Los Angeles) introduced in February 2021. The proposal aims to prevent police misconduct, excessive use of force and racial bias in law enforcement.
The Say No to Drugs & Violence Parade goes back to 1989. It was started by the pastor of Healing Temple Church, Rev. Dr. Arthur Lockhart, to address challenges faced by members in the community. The legacy of gathering community members to combat violence continues on Chicago’s West Side 36 years later.