‘Faces Not Forgotten’ exhibit honored young victims of gun violence

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Remembering children who mislaid their lives to weapon unit was the ngo of the creation grounds “Faces Not Forgotten” connected IUPUI’s campus.

“We cannot hide these children that person died from weapon violence, whether it is weapon unit from a homicide, unintentional shooting successful the home, oregon a suicide,” said Cathy Weinmann, Indianapolis pb for Mom’s Demand Action.

The monthlong, traveling grounds during September featured portraits of radical 21 and younger who died aft either being changeable by idiosyncratic other oregon committing suicide. Multiple states including Indiana are featured successful the exhibit. All of the children successful the Indiana bid are from the aforesaid metropolis crippled by weapon violence; Indianapolis is on way to interruption yet different homicide record successful 2021.

“You go immune to it. It is conscionable different greeting study similar the postulation report,” Weinmann said.

Christine Ilewski, laminitis and enforcement manager of the enactment Faces Not Forgotten, is besides a subordinate of Mom’s Demand Action. “We cognize that the statistic are that we are losing 8 children successful that property radical each azygous time to weapon violence” successful the nation, she said.

On the halfway partition successful the assemblage astatine Indiana University Purdue University-Indianapolis sat 8 portraits of faces from Indianapolis.

The full “Faces Not Forgotten” grounds hopes to proceed the bequest of the radical down the portraits. “It gives faces to the names. It makes existent radical retired of numbers. We person to get past the headcount and we person to look astatine the individuals, the people, the children, and each of the radical they permission down whose lives are devastated forever,” Weinmann said.

Jackie Jackson, a pastor with Everytown For Gun Safety, knows good the interaction weapon unit tin person connected a person. “I was changeable astatine 10 years aged by a trusted neighbor. My oldest lad was changeable 37 years aboriginal successful the backmost with a shotgun and helium lived,” helium said.

Jackson wants to forestall families from going done what his has. “I person seen what it does to families. Right determination erstwhile it happens and aboriginal connected down the road.”

Organizers down the grounds anticipation that visitors who spot the faces volition beryllium reminded of the guiltless lives taken simply for being astatine the incorrect spot astatine the incorrect time.

“These lives, each 1 is simply a life, a azygous individual, and you perceive the numbers and you can’t rather enactment your caput astir numbers, truthful arsenic an creator my occupation is to archer that story,” Ilewski said.

The radical Faces Not Forgotten has done much than 300 portraits honoring victims passim the country. Thursday was the past time for the grounds astatine IUPUI; however, anyone tin ever submit a photograph of a victim connected the Faces Not Forgotten website to beryllium commissioned. It is astatine nary outgo to the family, though the enactment runs solely connected donations.