Annual peace walk unites those affected by gun violence while also honoring a legacy

The peace walk takes place this Saturday, starting at 1:30 p.m. with a resource fair

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) — It’s a peace walk that’s held a community together for a cause for the last nine years.

“The greatest thing about that is that this peace walk, it exemplifies everything you wanna see from a community standpoint. And it, and it just, it’s for the community, by the community,” says Ricardo Franklin, the organizer and the younger brother of Antonio Franklin Jr.

Ricardo lost his older brother Antonio Franklin back in 2014, in a random act of gun violence and since then, his mother Anita who passed away in 2020, but before that, she decided to create an event that would not only honor Antonio’s memory but also unite those affected by gun violence.

“I’m really just thankful for my community as well because they’ve embraced me, the Sheriff’s office, my family, and so many other survivors and families of gun violence. They’ve just really embraced us and made us feel like we have a voice and that we’re important still in the society,” says Ricardo.

Ricardo recalls asking his mother, the purpose of the walk, he says she would often times tell him, “because your brother’s name should not be forgotten. None of these survivor’s names should be forgotten or gun violence victim’s name should be forgotten. And I think that’s the main point about it. Like that’s just the purpose behind it is that we don’t want these names to be forgotten.”

He also spoke on the spike in gun violence nationwide and says it will take everyone to create change.

“It’s definitely gonna take some conversation, some tough conversation and really dig deep to find out what we can do to get better. But like, like my mom said, you know, it, it does take all of us and we just gotta work together,” he adds.

When asked what he would tell his brother Antonio if he were still alive today, “I would, I’d give him a hug and tell him I love him and that I’m, I’m proud of him. I know throughout his life he went through adversity. He faced adversity many times and you know, he, it just started to really, you know, get going and get back on his feet. And at the time he was killed, it was a really a gut punch, but it motivated me.”

The peace walk begins at 1:30 p.m. with a resource fair, they expect to do the actual walk between 3:15 and 3:30 p.m. It is all taking place at Duncan Park.