ENOUGH

That is what t-shirts said, that is what signs said, that is what is on bumper stickers and lawn signs and that is what 5000 people who marched to New Orleans city hall said today.

Since January 1, there have been 9 murders in New Orleans. 9 murders in 11 days.

In the year 2006, 43 of the 116 murdered people were between the ages of 11 and 20.

One of the muder victims was Helen Hill. She was killed entering her own home. Her husband, a physician who worked in a clinic for indigent patients, was shot three times while shielding their 2 year old son. The child was not injured.

Helen Hill taught at NOCCA, the school my daughter attends every afternoon. She lived in Faubourg Marigny, the neighborhood in which NOCCA is located. It is a wonderful neighborhood with artists, musicians, professors, diversity and the varied architecture that characterizes New Orleans.

I have walked by Ms. Hill's house many times when I walk the neighborhood to pass the time while waiting for Miss Teen to get out of class. I walked by it again today. Since August I have seen 4 police officers in this neighborhood and that was in a cafe. Today I saw 15 on the streets.

5000 people, in a city that has an estimated population of 200,000, marched today to say Enough. They marched on a weekday morning, during working hours, in a march that was organized in ONE WEEK. The citizens of New Orleans have had it. Our children, our mothers, and our fathers are being murdered.

Enough is Enough.