The coalition consists of community leaders, community members, and organizations to call for a city-wide "holiday truce" and raise money for cease-fire events in time for the holiday season.

The first event will be held on Wednesday, November 24, at Muhamad Park and Christian Stronghold Baptist Church, located on Lancaster Avenue in Philadelphia. 

Some concerned citizens have called out those events as the city gets closer to the dreadful milestone of 500 homicides and the holidays are just around the corner.

Gun Violence Crisis in Philadelphia

Almost 500 people have been killed in Philadelphia in the first half of 2021, putting Philadelphia on course to surpass the city's annual homicide record in the next few days.

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, increasing gun violence is primarily to blame for causing the number of homicides this year to reach its highest level since 1960. That's when the police department started keeping statistics on homicides.

With roughly six weeks left in the year, the number of people who have died is sure to surpass the 500 individuals who were killed in 1990 during the height of the crack-cocaine epidemic. 

The report also revealed that the relentless rate of homicides until Tuesday is 13 percent higher than it was at the same point in 2020 when gunshots spiked amid the global epidemic. The city concluded the year with 499 homicide victims. 

Most of the violence has occurred in communities of color that are underprivileged.

The dreadful milestone of 501 homicides will almost certainly be reached in the coming days and around the Thanksgiving holiday, following a horrific weekend in which six people were killed. 

One of those killed was a woman who was seven months pregnant when she was tragically shot in the head and stomach while unpacking gifts from her baby shower. 

Residents Blame the Pandemic

The Philadelphia Inquirer also reported that gun violence across Philadelphia and large swaths of the country soared in the spring of 2016 for various reasons, according to city officials, law enforcement, and criminologists.

Many pointed to existing structural inequalities such as poverty and underemployment, which the pandemic has worsened, and the closing of schools and in-person support services for youth as the root causes of the pandemic.

This year, there have been about 55% more killings so far than last year at this time. The number of deaths is higher than in 2013 and 2014. There have been almost 11 homicides in the city every week in an unrelenting trend.

According to police statistics, 31 children under the age of 18 were shot and killed by mid-November, triple that of 2015.

Christian Stronghold Baptist Church

Christian Stronghold Baptist Church, founded in 1966, has a congregation of more than 4,000 individuals. For children, women, and men, it offers a wide range of opportunities for spiritual growth.

A variety of religious lectures, seminars, and presentations are held throughout the year at the church. It provides biblically-based guidance on topics such as education, financial, and career planning.