Liminalizing Progressive Efforts in Chicago: Moving Forward and Past Violence

• Author: Megan Lambertz‐Berndt
• Published date: 01 September 2015
• Date: 01 September 2015
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/crq.21123

C R Q, vol. 33, no. 1, Fall 2015 99

© 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the Association for Confl ict Resolution

Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) • DOI: 10.1002/crq.21123

Liminalizing Progressive E orts in Chicago: Moving

Forward and Past Violence

Megan Lambertz-Berndt

 is article focuses on the framing of pervasive violence in South Side

Chicago neighborhoods, subsequently off ering a diff erent lens to high-

light the contributions and progressive eff orts stemming from indi-

viduals residing in these areas.  ere remains a necessary shift from

the passive images of those killed by violent acts to the active eff orts of

nonprofi ts working to decrease violence as well as educational programs

focusing on interpersonal skills, mediation, and emotional intelligence.

The media have had a signifi cant impact on the way that lower-income

areas of Chicago have been represented during the aftermaths of

neighborhood violence. A majority of the stories concerning these violent

attacks concentrate on the liminal space, a transitional place where family

members and friends of victims mourn the loss of their loved ones.  is

space does not contain future goals or plans; rather, it stays in one state

of mind where the memories of the victim are often publicized (Jones,

Zagacki, and Lewis 2007). For family members of Chicago’s violence-

stricken neighborhoods, the liminal space presents itself in a variety of

forms including rituals (Palmer 2012), memorabilia (Jones et al. 2007),

and artifacts.  ese forms are then broadcast by the media after a crime,

devoting a large portion of the news story to the pathos appeal of the fam-

ily’s suff ering.  e media’s preference for the liminal space limits progres-

sive eff orts from mediation programs and organizational campaigns such

as CeaseFire (currently known as Cure Violence), whose sole purpose is to

stop gun violence in South Side Chicago neighborhoods.

 is article assesses the state of violence in Chicago, off ers a defi nition

of liminal space and its various forms as they relate to violent Chicago

100 LAMBERTZBERNDT

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crimes, looks at the lack of media attention on nonprofi t organizations

and peer mediation programs that seek to decrease the amount of violence

in Chicago neighborhoods, and discusses theoretical and practical appli-

cations.  ere remains a necessary shift from the passive images of those

killed by violent acts to the active eff orts of nonprofi ts working to decrease

violence as well as educational programs focusing on interpersonal skills,

mediation, and emotional intelligence.

Framing of Chicago Violence

Violence aff ects all cities; however, in Chicago, the violence is pervasive.

 is violence permeates communities that are attempting to conduct

violence-free activities such as pickup basketball or Little League base-

ball. In 2013, a shooting took place at a pickup basketball game in South

Side Chicago where thirteen were severely wounded (Davey and Williams

2013). According to these authors, two New York Times reporters wrote,

“ Chicago has more than 500 homicides in 2012—more than any other city

in the nation and about 80 more than New York, which has three times as

many people” (para. 5). A story in the Chicago Tribune a few months later

stated that a six-year-old boy “was hit in the chest on his way to a tutoring

class with his two brothers in the Gage Park neighborhood” (Nickeas and

Ford 2013, para. 1).  is amount of perpetuated violence is staggering and

raises the question: Why is this happening? Webster, Whitehill, Vernick,

and Curriero (2013) claim that “many urban youth believe that gun car-

rying in high-crime neighborhoods is common, and that the ‘code of the

street’ or social norm in these neighborhoods is to be willing to respond

with lethal violence if threatened” (27).  is perception has been shaped

in part to the circumstances and experiences within the community as well

as the portrayal of such unescapable violence by the media in low-income

areas such as South Side Chicago.

State offi cials and national representatives are also off ering perspectives

on why violence is a problem in Chicago. Chicago Tribune reporter Jason

Meisner (2013) reported that “United States attorney Zachary Fardon

said Wednesday that the senseless slaughter of children caught in Chica-

go’s gang crossfi re keeps him up at night and that the level of mayhem is

an ‘unacceptable status quo’ that has to change” (para. 1). Fardon’s state-

ment, however, does not explain why gun violence remains unaddressed in

the political realm; rather, it off ers a perspective from an individual who