Tory vows to ‘stamp out’ gun violence
After weekend of shootings, mayor calls on Queen’s Park and Ottawa for help
Mayor John Tory says he is reaching out to the provincial and federal governments to help fight gun violence following a rash of recent shootings in public spaces in Toronto, including two over the Canada Day long weekend that left two people dead and several injured.
Tory said he spoke to Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders on Monday to assure him the city would provide resources needed to help address the violence and that the chief confirmed “police are seized with this issue and working relentlessly to bring people to justice.”
“The unacceptable gun violence we’ve seen in the last few weeks has left me incredibly angry but resolved to work with the police to stamp it out,” Tory said in statement Monday afternoon.
On Sunday evening, four people were injured in a shooting on Augusta Ave. in the heart of Kensington Market.
That followed another brazen shooting on Saturday night outside Cube nightclub on Queen St. W. near Spadina that killed rappers Jahvante Smart, 21, and Ernest Modekwe, 28, also known as Smoke Dawg and Koba Prime, respectively, and injured another. The killings brought Toronto’s homicide count to 50 and were just the latest of several gun-related crimes perpetrated in public areas across the city in as many weeks.
Police are still looking for suspects in both incidents, which follow a wave of gun-related violence in the city.
In the early morning of June 25, Brent Young, 41, was shot and killed in a Toronto public housing building near Dundas and Sherbourne Sts.
Less than 24 hours earlier, on June 24, Jenas Nyarko, 31, was struck by a bullet while sitting in the back seat of a car near Allen Rd. and Lawrence Ave. W. after someone in a car driving by fired a single shot at the vehicle. Nyarko died in hospital.
That same night, Patrick McKenna, 22, and Dalbert Allison, 40, were killed after being shot at a residence near Kipling Ave. and Albion Rd. in Etobicoke.
And just 10 days before that, two sisters, ages 5 and 9, were shot while playing one afternoon in a Scarborough playground. The girls, one of whom was struck in the stomach, the other in the ankle, have undergone multiple surgeries.
Tory said the safety of Toronto is his “top priority,” pointing to the fact the city is hiring 200 officers this year. He reiterated his commitment to advocate for tougher gun control and bail conditions for gun crime.
But Jay Pitter, who consults with cities at the intersection of urban design and social justice, wants officials to look beyond just enforcement.
“The response to gun violence tends to be focused on increasing police presence and using racially charged language. This is simplistic,” she said. “If we responded from a city-building perspective, we’d be confronted with the ways economic disparities, historical displacement, racism, and despair impede safety in cities.
“This issue is complicated, the city is part of the problem and it can also be a part of the resolution.”
Councillor Joe Cressy, in whose ward both Canada Day long weekend shootings took place, said the city has seen a recent increase in gang activity associated with “neighbourhood rivalries and pride.” He said in addition to getting guns — and the people who use them — off the streets quickly, the city needs to build stronger mentorship programs, create better youth employment strategies and foster better social development plans in the longer term so that young people have an avenue for empowerment beyond gang-related activity.
“When incidents like this occur, it is deeply destabilizing. I think unfortunately we’re often looking for the quick answer, the silver bullet. There is not one,” Cressy told the Star Monday. “While we have to provide immediate support and protection, the undercurrent of this violence is complex and thus, the solutions have to be complex as well.”
In his statement Monday afternoon, Tory said he expects police to “do everything possible to root out the thugs responsible for this violence and send a message that we will not tolerate this reckless disregard for life in our city.” The mayor said he will be contacting Premier Doug Ford and Federal Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale to discuss ways to ramp up efforts to end the violence. “I know they are both as committed as I am to putting these gangsters in jail.”
Saunders did not respond to the Star’s request for comment Monday, but told reporters Sunday night while visiting the scene of the shooting in Kensington Market that “people should feel safe downtown.”
The premier tweeted earlier Monday that his heart goes out to the victims of the shootings over the weekend.
“This has been a very difficult summer in our city, and thoughts and prayers just aren’t going to cut it anymore. We need action,” Ford wrote. “Toronto is home to the greatest police officers. We need to make sure they have the resources to round up these criminals, build relationships in communities, and prevent these shootings.”
In Kensington Market, where four people were injured in the shooting about 10:30 p.m. Sunday on Augusta Ave., a main shopping and entertainment artery, residents and business owners expressed shock at the reckless nature of the crime.
Amer Mokdad, owner of the Burgernator, which is located near where the shooting occurred, said he thinks the neighbourhood needs more police officers and even a small police station or office. While he said business may quiet down for the next couple of days, he’s confident it will bounce back.
“Torontonians love life. Life goes on,” he said.