March against violence brings hundreds of young men out on South Side
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Brilliance and Excellence is a mantra and the name of a movement made up of more than 20 organizations that mentor young Black men in Chicago. Saturday morning they united for a march against violence.
As CBS 2's Noel Brennan reports, hundreds of young men filled the streets on the city's South Side.
When voices are as loud as cars on the street, they're hard to ignore.
"I think a march just opens up eyes. It brings awareness to the community," said Vernon "VBJ" Brooks, who set the pace and the volume.
Brooks, with VBJ Global, was up front to help lead the Brilliance and Excellence march.
"The only way we're going to make a loud voice is to come together and make a chant and march against violence," he said.
The event brings together hundreds of young Black men from across the city.
"You're seeing a bunch of Black men marching and unified," Brooks said. "We're not killing each other. There's no guns. There's no negative energy. It's all brotherly love."
At Mandrake Park the march ended and basketball began with a three-on-three tournament.
"The march was a rallying cry to bring all of our boys and men together to really support Chicago as a community and show that we can unify with each other," said Mike Holder, co-founder of Operation Basketball.
The message from the march resonates on and off the court.
Young men took the microphone to plead for a safe summer.
"There's more work that is ahead because a march is not an answer, but it's one way to solving the solution of violence in the City of Chicago," said Adeeb Borden.
Borden does not have the solution, but he's trying.
"We cannot stop people from killing each other or shooting, but what we can do is control or work with the young men and invest in the young men that are willing to be invested into."
Even if these voices of reason are ignored, they will keep speaking against violence.
"We keep marching. We keep talking. We keep working," Borden said.
At the end of the march, young people had a chance to connect with community organizations and learn about job opportunities and other resources available to them in the city.