Kensington’s Peace Park officially opens with the unveiling of the Gun Violence Memorial Sculpture, a poignant centerpiece made from disassembled firearms collected during gun buyback events in 2024. The sculpture not only serves as a memorial but also illuminates every 11 minutes, symbolizing the frequency of gun violence deaths in the United States, a staggering statistic underscored by research from Johns Hopkins University.
The park aims to foster community connection and encourage dialogue around gun violence, which has affected many local families, particularly teenagers. Collaborative efforts from artist Jacob Christopher Hammes and RAWtools Philadelphia allowed neighborhood youth to learn welding skills while contributing to this significant artwork. As Jane Golden, Mural Arts founder, emphasizes, “These numbers are not just statistics,” highlighting the sculpture’s role in humanizing the tragic impact of gun violence within the community.
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