DeKalb residents, community leaders call for peace, rally against gun violence: ‘Put the guns down’

Following a string of shootings over five weeks in May and June in the Annie Glidden North Neighborhood, DeKalb residents came together Friday to march for peace and rally against gun violence.

Participants chanted “No more silence, end gun violence, we want peace” as they marched from Northern Illinois University’s parking lot through the north side neighborhood.

The march was a collaboration between New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, DeKalb and NIU police departments, and the city of DeKalb. Organizers said they wanted to send a message of peace to push back against gun violence in the area.

The Rev. Joseph Mitchell, senior pastor at New Hope, said the event’s focus was to engage the community and spread a message of de-escalation.

“We were really concerned,” Mitchell said. “You’re talking about a five-week span when you had three shootings. We thought it was important that we do something.”

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Treveda Shah, from DeKalb, (right) gets a high-five from Legend Chappel, 2, from DeKalb, Friday, July 18, 2025, during the DeKalb Peace Walk and Rally. The event, which featured a march, food vendors and music, was held to encourage the community to work together against gun violence. (Mark Busch)

This spring’s shootings included among them one deadly one and another that involved three minors.

Anthony D. Hernandez, 20, was shot to death June 9 in the early-morning hours at DeKalb’s Meadowlark Townhomes. One person suffered serious injuries in a May 28 shooting midday outside Russell Road Apartments in DeKalb, police said. And three teenagers were arrested and charged in connection with a May 5 shooting outside an apartment building in the 900 block of Kimberly Drive, police said.

Mitchell said he thinks the community would benefit from increased investments. The neighborhood near the campus isn’t just for students.

“You’re talking about a community that was originally designed for off-campus student housing,” he said. “Right now it’s really turned into a place where families are living, where children are living, and there’s really not a whole lot for them to do. There’s no community center, there’s not a whole lot of parks. I believe as we invest more in this community we’ll see acts of violence decrease significantly.”

After the march, participants gathered in NIU’s Lot X.

DeKalb mother Andrea Elion recounted the pain of losing her 10-year-old son Ezra “EJ” Hill Jr, in a drive-by shooting in Chicago in 2019. She’s been an outspoken local voice decrying gun violence since, and recently marked five years with a memorial advocacy foundation she set up in her son’s honor.

“Our children should have a chance to grow up,” Elion said. “It could have easily been you or your child caught in the crossfire. We don’t know when our time will expire here on earth, but we know that gun violence should not be the reason why.”

“We just need to put the guns down. We need to understand de-escalation techniques instead of running to a gun."

—  Treveda Shah

The march was attended by City Manager Bill Nicklas, Assistant City Manager Bob Redell, a former DeKalb police commander and interim chief who now leads the city’s crime-free housing division. NIU’s acting Police Chief Jason John and other NIU and DeKalb police officers and city officials also marched with residents.

“I think bringing attention to the matter and talking about it and having real conversations is important,” John said. “If nobody decides to do anything or say anything about it, it’s never going to get addressed. Today was about getting together as a community and standing for change and standing in solidarity.”

Huntley Middle School Principal Treveda Shah said bringing attention to gun violence is personal for her.

“As an educator and as a building principal that is always near and dear to my heart,” Shah said. “It is always my hope that my students make it back from the summer break.”

Shah said for her, the peace rally was important to send a message that guns are not the answer.

“We just need to put the guns down. We need to understand de-escalation techniques instead of running to a gun,” Shah said. “That’s the problem. People don’t know how to communicate.”