CHICAGO (CBS) — A year ago Wednesday, the murder of one teenage girl stunned the city and inspired renewed efforts to stop gun violence.
Hadiya Pendleton was the innocent victim of gang warfare. President Obama mentioned her in his State of the Union address.
CBS 2′s Jim Williams talked to Hadiya’s parents, who despite their grief have been very busy in the past year.
January 29th is an anniversary Cleo and Nate Pendleton dread.
“I don’t look forward to the 29th at all,” said Nate Pendleton.
“I’m afraid of the 29th because I remember what it felt like last year,” said Cleo Pendleton.
One year ago Wednesday, their daughter Hadiya was shot to death near her high school, an innocent 15-year-old who was the victim of alleged gang members who fired into a crowd.
“We grieve always. Talking to you, we’re grieving. Talking about our baby is sad because it’s in the past tense,” said Cleo Pendleton.
Hadiya’s murder, near President Obama’s home a week after she performed at his inauguration, galvanized the city. The Pendletons led efforts against gun violence. Now the city just announced a 40 percent drop in youth violence last year.
“It would be wonderful if the death of Hadiya had a ripple effect on consciousness being raised in young people, and for them to make a different choice on how to handle situations,” said Cleo Pendleton.
This last difficult year has taught them how to console grieving parents.
“There’s no right thing to say,” said Cleo Pendleton. “People just being present sometimes is enough.”
Two young men were charged with Hadiya’s murder. Her father, Nate, told us when he saw them in court, they flashed gang signs and his first instinct was to rush them, but he showed restraint.
