![]() ![]() Several of the Younger brothers joined Quantrill's Raiders when their father was shot to death by a Union force in July 1862. Members of Quantrill's Raiders were therefore executed without formality by the Union soldiers when they were caught. They killed not only Union soldiers but also civilians and were regarded cruel war criminals by the Union side. They pursued a guerrilla warfare which rapidly escalated into a succession of atrocities. They were members of the so-called Quantrill's Raiders who were a loosely organized force of pro-Confederate Partisan rangers, who fought in the Civil War under the leadership of William Clarke Quantrill. The James-Younger Gang had its origins in a group of Confederate bushwhackers during the American Civil War 1861 - 1865 who fought in the bitter partisan conflict that wracked the divided state of Missouri. The Younger brothers were born in Jackson County, Missouri. Jesse and Frank James were born in Kearney, Clay County, Missouri. Heavy sentences, video surveillance and the like seem to have little or no impact on these brazen butchers.Swedish Settler Shot by the Jesse James Gang in 1876 The James-Younger Gang was a notorious gang of American outlaws who robbed banks, trains and stagecoaches and was centered in the State of Missouri. Toronto is not a dangerous place - even if I’m hit by a stray bullet. Do something now before we sink into oblivion.” Meanwhile, those directly impacted tend to overreact with: “Toronto is a dangerous place. ![]() People either under react by saying, “This is just an isolated incident ignore it and go about your lives.” Those are the people who are insulated from the event. That may be a proper response to the Eaton Centre debacle - not the two main reflex actions that mark the aftermath of the Saturday shooting at the food court in which a lone gunman targeted one or two persons in some kind of personal feud and ended up injuring bystanders and killing one of his targets. Still, there is no great angst, just awareness and a resolve to be a part of the solution. The Toronto West Seventh-day Adventist Church just happens to be in a part of the city where gunfire is not a rare event and where too many youths solve disputes at the barrel of a gun. So police visits are cause for comfort, not concern. Or engage in a community-focused ministry that views the violence for what it is - the public manifestation of private hell among members of our city whose reality is obviously different from those enraptured in the church in holy ecstasy. Always, they are scouting and scoping for area youths - none of them members of the church.Īfter the 2005 shooting, members had to decide if they wanted to flee the area and its gang-related feuds. Occasionally, cop cars roar into the church’s parking lot. Just last year, the church hosted another funeral of a youth killed by gunfire, five or six doors from the church. I imagine members at my church - innocent bystanders in the Rexdale violence - would draw the same conclusions. And they advocated police lock up the criminals and throw away the key. They blamed the violence on a far too lenient justice system absent fathers and poor parenting. Not surprisingly, the majority of the callers assumed the killer was black, likely Jamaican. When the cops stopped by to chat, I had been listening to G98.7 FM and their Grapevine phone-in show. ![]() By at least one measure - fatalities - we are better off seven years later. This year, including Saturday’s tragic Eaton Centre killing, there have been 21 murders. ![]() By this time in 2005, Toronto had 27 murders. Torontonians recall that year as the summer of the gun. Just dropping by to introduce themselves and let parishioners know they are part of the TAVIS police initiative in Division 23 and will be available all summer to chat, meet with youths, provide a police presence, answer questions - whatever members need.ĭon’t know if the officers knew it, but they were talking and standing on the concrete landing at the front door of the church where teenager Amon Beckles was gunned down November 2005 as he attended the funeral of his friend, also a gun victim. Nothing to worry about, the three cops said. Gardening in a light, slow rain at my church in Rexdale on Sunday - an hour before wedding guests arrived - the cops interrupted our weeding and planting to strike up a little chat. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |