‘Violence is preventable’: Shooting of 2 Milwaukee police officers prompts community support response
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) — On Friday, June 27, dozens of community members of all ages gathered near the intersection of 24th and Garfield to show support for neighbors after two Milwaukee police officers were injured in a shooting late Thursday night.
The group split off into sections, some picking up trash and debris while others passed out gun locks and pamphlets to residents in the area.
“You hear a lot of discouragement. You hear, 'Wow, Milwaukee, we’re going the wrong way right now,'” said Karin Tyler, the interim director for the county’s Office of Community Wellness and Safety.
Tyler noted that when traumatic events like the recent shooting occur, it’s crucial to show up for those in need as there is plenty of strength in numbers.
“We’re just trying to get a powerful presence out here today, to give this neighborhood some hope that we’re out here and they don’t have to do this alone,” Tyler told CBS 58’s Ellie Nakamoto-White. “There’s people, there’s support, there’s services that they might not even know of, so we’re going to try to give them as much information as we can today.”
She added that they have identified the area where the shooting happened as “high violence” with low resources, and that group gatherings are a step in the right direction.
“But we know violence is preventable,” Tyler said. “And we are determined to try to bring these numbers down.”