Stop. Think. Breathe. Kansas Citians call for de-escalation of gun violence.

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United by grief, frustration, and a desire to stop the violence, residents gathered at The Parade park Saturday afternoon for a rally to stop the violence in Kansas City.The event’s theme was Stop, Think, Breathe, to de-escalate an altercation and to change the circumstances surrounding violence.“Guns down, spread the love,” said Lisha Sullivan, one of the organizers of the event. “There’s no need to take somebody’s life. It has so many effects on another individual.”Her child lost his father in a shooting five years ago. Their son was five months old at the time.“My son asks me every day, ‘Momma, where is my daddy at?’ or ‘I wish my daddy was here because he would be so proud of me.”Sullivan turned to advocacy with Kansas City’s Revolutionary Black Panther Party. The group partnered with local organizations such as Ad Hoc Group Against Crime to provide information about resources in the community, as well as food and activities for families. As the city debates over police funding, members say investment should be focused on people impacted by violence.“This is gonna happen wherever there’s poverty, so put money back into the community,” said Indigenous Xi. “Raise more education and stop handling so many of our issues with more police. We need more community.”“Being a part of your community, being more involved in your community and not just policing, building relationships, getting to know people,” said Sullivan.“I feel like if everybody is focusing on one common ground, we’re gonna just try to stop the gun violence, stop the violence period, I think that’s a start.”