In Chicago, there are dozens of unsolved murders of black and brown women.
Victims’ voices were silenced when they fell victim to someone who cared nothing about their lives, or when their families were left to suffer the unimaginable loss.
One West Side faith leader is relentlessly pursuing justice for victims like Angela Ford, whose now-grown daughter has still not received answers two decades later.
“We would get together on Sundays after church and go to my great aunt’s house for dinner. Those are some of my favorite memories of her “Keyana Brickell, Angela Ford’s daughter, stated.
Brickell recalls one of her mother’s few fond memories, Angela Ford, and the rest is a blur.
“I remember me and my brother asking to come with her to the school to pick up our report cards, and she said no, she loved us, and she would be right back and that it wouldn’t take long,” Brickell recalled. “That was pretty much the last time I saw her.”
Her mother, however, did not return. She went missing for several days before being discovered in an abandoned building less than two miles from her home.
She was raped, beaten, strangled, and left for dead. That was back in 1999.
Angela was in a coma for a year and a half before she died. The DNA evidence did not match her assailant, and Keyana’s questions about “why” and “who” were never answered.
“I just couldn’t believe like someone would do that to her,” Brickell exclaimed.
Angela Ford is one of dozens of unsolved murders of women in Chicago. The parallels are undeniable. The majority of the victims are black women who were discovered in vacant homes, lots, or dumpsters. Some were burned, some were dismembered, but all were strangled.
“In places like Chicago, the police department advises people not to say things like “serial killer” because they might scare someone. But we should want to frighten someone “said Robin Hood.
Reverend Robin Hood of the West Side is on a mission to find answers for the victims’ families.
Rev. Hood works tirelessly to elicit information from an overburdened Chicago Police Department.
“Every day, law enforcement decides what to work on. Every day, as you are aware, there is gun violence in Chicago “Hood stated.
Some of the cases date back nearly three decades, and the questions are typically the same, according to him.
“Inquiring if they were an alcoholic? Were they addicted to drugs or prostitutes? When a loved one goes missing, it is the most hurtful and painful experience anyone can have “Hood stated.
According to Brickell, the longer families wait for justice, the more likely they will believe their loved ones are unimportant.
“Because of where these ladies come from—the neighborhoods—not much is being done about it. They believe that black women have no worth “said Brickell.
According to Chicago police, these cases are still open, but there is no link between them.
“To not answer those crimes and to not put the resources in there is really a situation I would call not getting cooperation from all the resources and people don’t trust you when you don’t solve the crimes,” Hood explained.
Although some police sources claim that some of these cases are undoubtedly linked. The Washington, D.C.-based Murder Accountability Project agrees that there is clearly a link between some of the cases.
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