Gottingen Street rally supports neighbours after shootings

Family, friends and neighbours stood on a Halifax street corner on Thursday evening, rallying for support mere metres away from where aman was shot and killed earlier thisweek.

"This is really stunning for the community," saidRhondaBritton, pastor atCornwallisStreet Baptist Church, in addressing the crowd.

"We want to continue to drive home the message to our young people who are involved in violent activities that that is not the answer. That is not the way."

Two deaths in one week

About 50 to 100 people held signs, listened to speeches and chanted messages of peace in the wake of two shooting deaths in the city since Sunday. The rally was organized CeaseFire Halifax with other community members.

"We go off the 'cure violence model' that originated in Chicago that actually says we should hold a violent incident response within 72 hours of the shooting," community mobilizer Amanda Bradshaw said.

'We want to put a stop to this'

Police believe the two recent deaths are related. On Sunday, former Halifax Rainmen player Tyler Richards was found dead in a west-end house. On Tuesdaynight, 23-year-old Naricho Claytonalso was killed. Another man was sent to hospital with serious injuries.

Shawn Parker, an outreach worker who lives just up the street from where Clayton was killed, says the rally isn't just reacting to the violence of the last few days.

"Over a period of time, you know, we can sit down and talk and work things out before we start taking lives," Parker said.

"Of course everybody's a little not a little, but a lot concerned. But like I said, it takes a community to come out and voice that concern and say, 'We want to put a stop to this'."

'Support the neighbourhood'

Dave Elliott, 36, says being a father of four motivated himto attend the rally. That, and he's had friends directly affected by the violence.

"There's a lot of people that are scared to come out and show themselves," Elliot said.

"I'm here to support the neighbourhood."

'Do things differently'

There will be a second rally on Sunday at 4 p.m., also on Gottingen Street, being organized by Quentrel Provo, founder of Stop the Violence.

"There are families that are hurting from these losses," Britton told the crowd.

"If we are ever going to stop the pain, it has to begin with each one of us deciding that we are going to do things differently."