What took place last week was beyond terrible. It struck a cord in all of our hearts. But we cannot forget the fact that too many people in our city and around the nation have died as a result of senseless violence. In Paterson, it has been out of hand for far too long. There have been rallies, prayers walks and meetings. We must do much more.

We cannot fail in the battle to end gun violence in the streets. There must be a follow up by the community to address this issue once and for all. We have to be the ones to see to it that it happens. It’s not about any one specific person but all of us. We may be a mixture of many cultures and belief systems but we are all Paterson residents.

I am contemplating the the next steps to address the issue of senseless violence in Paterson. Over the next few weeks I will be organizing a committee that will be comprised of city residents from all nationalities and religious backgrounds. All city residents are welcome to be a part of this movement.

The purpose will be to hammer out a concrete plan to address this once and for all. I want to stress the point the we all as city residents are stakeholders when it comes to our city. Everyone will be welcome to join. At this point it doesn’t matter if you’re a Christian, Muslim or Jew – if you want to get involved, now is the time.

In my opinion, for far too long we have been separated and exclusive when forming organizations and committees by race, creed color and kind. If we want to address the problems that affect us all – we all must be involved. We all live here together, right?

If you are interested then you need to inbox me here or call: 973-653-7798. I’m not at all interested in entertaining frivolous conversation or criticism if that is your desire I respectfully ask you not to call me.

Corey Teague
School board member