My son was killed by gun violence. Pass Protect Illinois Communities Act to stop more deaths.

We need to level the playing field between the rights of responsible gun owners and all of our inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

By Maria Pike for Chicago Sun-Times

December 31 2022

CHICAGO - I take no issue with responsible gun ownership. I am a member of a family who used guns to hunt when we were children. My friends are responsible gun owners, and I know fellow survivors who are members of the NRA.

However, as an advocate who witnesses the daily devastation of gun violence in our communities, and a mother who has experienced it first-hand, I stand unequivocally on the side of common-sense legislation like the Protect Illinois Communities Act under consideration in the Illinois General Assembly.

No community in Illinois, or anywhere in America, is immune to gun violence. This will remain true so long as we fail to make the changes needed to level the playing field between the rights of responsible gun owners and all of our inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, as written in the Declaration of Independence and implicit in the Constitution.

It is our civic duty to defend those rights. We deserve to live without fear of death because guns are too easy to access, even among irresponsible, abusive, criminal or otherwise dangerous players to themselves or others. We owe it to our children to take this action now to protect their futures. HB5855 must pass.

My son Ricky is dead, but now I act in his memory. He was murdered in Logan Square on Aug. 3, 2012. He was shot with a semi-automatic gun trying to park in front of his apartment. He was 24 years old.

Honor your children while they are still alive. Support the Protect Illinois Communities Act. I honor Ricky with action.

Maria Pike, Pilsen