Mother’s Peace Walk against Gun Violence and recognizing the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Homicide was held on Saturday, September 25^th. It started with a couple hundred people at Yonge and Bloor with land acknowledgement and multi-faith prayers made on the way to Nathan Phillips Square.

Leading the walk were bikers from Out to Ride in formation and revving their engines along Yonge Street to Queen Street and on to City Hall where several people, who have been impacted by gun violence, spoke about guns and the way it affected their lives.

The Walk for Peace was organized by several community organizations who work to engage mothers and families in need of support to deal with their never-ending grief and trauma after losing their children to gun violence. Louis March said, “this event was done so that the mothers can have a platform to voice their pain the pain that they have to live with every day in isolation”

The Caribbean Camera spoke to Shamso Mohamoud Sky, a mother and victim of gun violence. Sky said, “we have so many people who have lost their lives. We have a buddy waiting for us; we are going to bury him on Monday. He was the son of one of my relatives, who was just 23 years old. He had finished his education but he was just collecting food at a restaurant when he was shot. We don’t know where these guns are coming from and who’s killing the people, but like an epidemic. We lost more of our youth to the gun then to covid-19.”

Stalworths like Valarie Steel were there supporting the next generation of activist like Louis March of Zero Gun Violence. MC for the event, Brooklyn Honey and many of the performers spoke about the trauma they suffered through some very emotional poetry. Xentry who spoke and sang a song dedicated to losing her boyfriend and friend she lost him to gun violence; she was shot herself and lived to sing about it.

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