After setting a record for homicides in 2021, Philadelphia continues to be plagued by gun crime in 2022. In response to the most violent year in its history, the city included a “historic investment of $155 million” in the fiscal year 2022 budget. The money went to “proven anti-violence strategies” such as community violence intervention programs, enrichment opportunities, workforce development training programs, and after-school programs.
None of it is working, as evidenced by the recent wave of gun violence in the city over the last four days. The city has yet to learn that the best way to stop crime is to arrest criminals and keep them in jail.
Between Thursday and Sunday, 39 people were shot, and nine were killed in the shootings. Twenty-one of these shootings occurred on Thursday alone, which fell two victims shy of the city’s record for shootings in a day, set in July 2020. The victims ranged in age from 3 to 65.
Before the most recent outbreak of violence, there had already been 132 murders in the city and at least 460 nonfatal shootings in Philadelphia this year — a 3% increase from last year’s record.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney posted a thread on Twitter about the recent shootings in the city.
“The amount of violent incidents over the past 24 hours in our city is devastating. The surge in gun violence that we’ve seen makes me not just heartbroken, but angry,” Kenney tweeted. “Our administration continues to work relentlessly to reduce violence and create safer communities for everyone.”
“I can’t reinforce enough how tragic and needless this loss of life is. Until we address the availability and ease of access to firearms, we will always be fighting an uphill battle,” he tweeted. “My deepest sympathies go out to the loved ones of those affected by violence.”
“Our commitment to solving this crisis is demonstrated by the expansion in violence prevention funding proposed in our latest #PHLBudget. We plan to invest over $184M to make communities safer,” he tweeted. “We continue to do everything we can to protect Philadelphians.”
Except the part about doing “everything we can to protect Philadelphians” is not true. During Kenney’s term, and more so since George Soros-funded Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner was elected, the government has pursued criminal justice reform programs that have been weak on criminals.
Krasner campaigned on reshaping the criminal justice system to help blacks. However, Philadelphia has witnessed more black lives lost to murder than before his election. Much of this can be attributed to Philadelphia’s current regime and its refusal to prosecute criminals, allowing them to cause havoc and harm innocent people.
The crime running rampant in Philadelphia is a symptom of Democrats prioritizing those wishing to harm instead of protecting the city’s citizens. The city’s people are paying the price.
