>> For many Chicagoans summer in the city means Street festivals, outdoor music concerts and beach days.

But for some of the city's younger neighbors, it means searching for fun activities with friends, but sometimes finding danger.

Instead so far this year for so-called teen takeovers have happened in the city.

Those are the sometimes dangerous, unauthorized mass gatherings of young people over Memorial Day weekend.

5 Chicago police officers were hit by a teen driver while attempting to break up a group on the near West Side the next day.

53 people were arrested at a gathering in Hyde Park and over this past weekend, 7 young people were shot in Brownsville.

Joining us with more on these events are ernest Cato.

He is he was the Chicago Police Department agrees with the Chicago Police Department serving for more than 30 years as chief deputy chief and commander of Chicago's 15th district, retired deputy Chief Gilberto Calderon.

A 32 year veteran of the Chicago Police Department.

He served as deputy chief as well as commander of Chicago's 10th District Katrina Waddy public education director at activists of Violence Prevention Group and Bradley Johnson, CEO of Build.

We should mention we did invite the Chicago Police Department to join us again.

But they have declined.

Thanks to the 4 of you for joining us.

Welcome back so I want to start with a statement from 3rd Ward Alderwoman Pat down.

Will she represents Bronzeville of court Bronzeville, of course, on this past weekend's shootings.

She says, quote, there had been too many unauthorized unsupervised and unreasonable gatherings of large groups of young people, which too often now lead to fights and shootings among young people.

We need to ask ourselves as the adults in the community.

Where are their parents?

Where are the role models?

Why are children out at night when quite honestly, they should be home and in bed.

How are we failing?

Our youth?

She goes on to say parents must be accountable.

Businesses that are complicit in hosting these events must be held responsible and if necessary closed.

I support Governor JB Pritzker's ban on cell phone use in schools.

It goes on to say we must hold social media companies accountable.

Gk do keto over to you first Alderman Dow.

She puts the blame some on guardians, local businesses, social media.

Do you agree with that assessment?

Well, just just to correct retired chief keto retired UK, what I say you're still the key >> accountability accountability.

That started home accountability started home with me when I was a young man.

You but same time we do have to recognize there are some homes where there isn't.

There's no supervision and we have homes are being period by those who may have supervision of their own.

And that's when it comes into play that we have to take a holistic approach approach with our resources.

Police should be in contact with the community organizations that make themselves available.

Providing information so those organizations can.

Take hold of that space prior to the takeovers.

And that I think the police are doing a good job in some of that.

And some of those areas, they continue jump so series.

But again, when you talk about accountability.

Accountability is at home.

It's at home.

But at home each resort.

they're able to be accountable.

So to that point, then should parents be penalized for their the actions of their children?

If parents don't know, for example, 17 year-old was out and getting into trouble.

I think parents should be given the resources they need to parents.

You know, there are some parents who are don't have the capability.

There's some parents that have multiple children that may be out.

Some parents that.

Can't get out.

We need to come up with some resources that will children can gravitate to.

But just to tell mom, I'm going to.

Rest you or give you a ticket because your 17 year-olds in that space, I don't think that's going to solve the problem.

She Calderon, you worked in both law enforcement and violence prevention.

How do you define a teen takeover?

And when does a large gathering?

>> Cross the line from, you know, harmless socializing in Kean's, get teens getting together and hanging out into a public safety issue.

What?

>> actually a general order that's in place.

call to a 2 in regards to large gatherings and one that comes out to 3 or more individuals that are gathering a certain location.

And obviously there if there's more and eventually joined them, I know you start make it into larger gathering.

looking at monitoring their behavior.

It's where trying to find whether there actually trying to just you know, a good time and over the crossing the line for criminal behavior.

just double down a little bit on what you mentioned earlier about social media.

I do believe that social media has a big impact on the John kids right now.

I'll give you an example of some of the things that we used to do that I thought was very helpful.

Not only including, you know, the violence intervention organizations, but but we do it.

But we did was we incorporated oak on terrorism.

And at that time know to Keita was the chief.

And what we did is we did look into open source, social media platforms and what we did discover it was that the majority of time is actually the same kids that are coming up with these, you know, ideas and put him out there.

One of the things that we did that I thought was very successful.

Plus, once we identify those individuals, we went along.

We did talk to the parents and we discussed the possible consequences of criminal behavior people getting hurt but we did this with enlisting the violence intervention organizations.

you know, so once we spoke to the parents or and or a guardian, but what they're, you teenage person was doing.

We really expect to what was actually happening.

Do feel like that's not happening today like to feel like the police department is not working with?

>> Community agencies to to use social media to go directly to the young people who are who are putting this out there.

You know, I do think that they are.

I just think that the >> social media aspect is just huge and trying to figure out which platform they're and trying to identify where they're at is very difficult to You can't get your arms around the Internet that you could possible Katrina, you've worked directly with youth who have been involved in these situations.

Well, what do they tell you about why they're attending?

But again, you know, the activists and we've talked about this before the show.

We take a public health approach to violence, intervention info.

>> And if that all of us as parents, it's faith-based community, it's businesses, it's a community residents.

And so one thing that we hadn't seen team to know the young people learn to to me being at how to.

And so we just hosted teen takeover listening session last weekend.

So >> it really good to hear from young people.

youth advisory boards representing Philip Hike, Great Land Crossing in Washington Park and literally that put them into overwhelming for them.

You camera crews were there and all that.

But to hear from them their perspectives on these teen takeover events.

And so to your point, you know it the social media aspect of it.

leave the EU with a look at things that are appealing to them, even if we don't agree with them, even they say is appealing to them about this when they talked about again, who doesn't want to go and have a good time, you know, you know, phony social media was out when we were in our, you team teen years.

What do you mean to tell a group of 15 people can turn to a group of 100 people.

That's more boys were girls in more folks to look at and talk to him phone numbers people that to follow you, all social media.

Now that.

And so that is an appeal to them.

And just being part of that internal unrest at all, these folks are going to be, you know, getting together at But we talked to them to about accountability in the letter that he's talked about.

That start at home.

But just because it starts at home doesn't mean that I'm not that I'm not raising a great I was awake you know Monday.

It's working to death right now.

I may say I'm at home in my so here at the street to the to the lakefront for a few minutes because what's going that is so when you talk about that public health approach, we're hearing from even some residents and business owners and had part those talking to couple of them this morning.

last week they aren't even looking at ways to say, hey, at their opportunities to employ some of these young people.

They kind of don't mind the young people being kind of in high You may not be a collective confesses what everybody but they rather than being high part because they can kind corralled them a little bit better.

But looking at ways to listen to them.

I think that's one of the first steps listening to them and without judgment of what we used to do back in my day.

that with is appealing to uaa as young people.

One of when abate and so.

>> Today Chicago launched free YMCA memberships for teens through the summer.

Here's a clip of Mayor Brandon Johnson discussing the program last week.

>> This investment in our young people has the potential to be life changing.

By providing Chicago teens with free access to gymnasiums, athletic turf fields, those swimming pools, they they might discover new passion.

Make new friends and find a mentor or gain confidence and a sense of belonging.

could help develop a person's journey.

And at the very least this program ensures that our young people can have safe, joyful and active summers because that's what young people deserve.

>> So Bradley with the mayor's describing sounds like a lot of good stuff for children to do during the day.

But think we know the teen takeovers tend to happen in the evening at night.

Is this the type of solution that we need or is it a little bit more complicated than just providing activities?

Well, that's It's a good start.

>> Just the same as I commend the mayor on expanding youth employment.

So Chicago youth works as well.

What I would say needs to change is how do we extend those hours so that for is for the employment at 5 and it's on weekdays.

Could they shift the time down?

So you have work a little bit later.

The other parts are the spaces and places.

Can we extend hours later signing a bill.

We made a concerted effort.

So in the summer months we have 3 nights a week that we do midnight basketball.

We also have community family night.

We have special activities and parties for young people.

We do community pa pups.

So we do our way of activities to keep young people, but also families connected and engaged in a space and a place there actually keeps them safe.

But they actually get half and they can do the stuff they want to do as well.

But I would say we have to extend to later in the day.

I would also imagine that, you know, by employing young teens, now some of them that paycheck needs to go home right help out.

But for some of them.

>> It's a little bit of extra money in their pocket and maybe they can put that money towards the movies or activity that might not get them in trouble, but they can afford.

Well, employment does a few things.

That thing for young people.

also exposes Amman introduces them to their future.

>> You can't just get there.

You can pop up in just have a job and have a life as an adult.

So to some employment give them the exposure puts caring adults in their path.

So as they start to form those starts to transform how they see themselves and also how to interact with the community.

So I think that trust or respect and all those things, the news generation, you have to earn it.

It's not just automatically give it.

And so I think the opportunity is there for us to open up spaces that we show that we really care about them.

And with that starts to do is pay dividends back in return.

>> So there's also a growing prevalence of teen takeovers.

It's happening at the same time as a loneliness epidemic that's affecting teenagers at a high rate.

According to the latest report by the World Health Organization's Commission on Social Connection, one in 6 people worldwide are affected by loneliness with people aged 13 to 17 are the most affected nearly 21% of that age group reportedly lonely followed by people 18 to 29 year-olds.

At 17.4% of them are reporting loneliness.

Katrina, are these events?

Are they a sign that young people are also desperately seeking connection and community and a place to belong at think so.

And I think that, you know, would act with this looking at doing is >> expanding.

We let expand in hours summer hours where I have these teams are working from 04:00PM until midnight to make sure that we're able kind of provide.

>> Conflict, mediation coverage, you know, during those hours where young folks there's a lot more domestic violence, you know, crimes to that, that's another topic, too.

but, definitely.

I think that, you know, social media when and you know, you've got exposure to hundreds and thousands of followers.

And, you know, folks like that.

But those opportunities to connect hosting a lot more hyper local community focus, you know, site to open events, including basketball's sports and mentoring.

Can't be just launched today on this over and poor man.

We'll have a karaoke kick it that even today we have planned.

you know, you get a test just have a good time with partnering with leading with law enforcement and other community organizations in North Lawndale will be a part of the play streets.

Programming abilities as well.

But we have these, you know, block parties and upbringing that some of old activities like the La Salle that, you back to period experience lot of parties.

But, you know, just just being able to have events that are free, you know that a fun, you know, that that can be can be shifted to really try unless we we asked again, so too, with withdraws to come to events like this and its social media exposure its social media, influencers that financial incentives that they talked about.

>> Of course, free food visibility draw people of people do with loneliness and social a social isolation and that's helping drive young people towards these gatherings change how cities should be thinking about prevention.

>> I think so.

I think I think it's very important to point out the loneliness plays a role and social media actually can take the place of loneliness and social media.

Second place of loneliness.

That's going to draw me into these areas when it draws to these areas.

Now want to become some be a part of something.

This popular and now becoming part of something as popular.

I want to be now.

I'm going to act out a way to be And I talked about this in the past.

When you treat something like it's invisible, you kind of get bad behavior.

But we start recognizing these things become a part of it.

You're going to see a change.

talked about these events that you hope you got invited police to these events.

Let them come into these events and be friend, these young because I'll tell you one thing I have were when they think they have a friend went to and you know, you ever for with that second to tell you things, we have to be more a part of everything in the city.

The city is one community.

We have to start treating like it's multiple communities.

It tend to do that.

Folks will want start Saturday.

city can say, well, it's not happening in my neighborhood.

Well, I tell you one thing, if you ignored, they were in your neighborhood.

>> So when someone says, well, why did you take an resources out here in you put it over there.

You know why?

Because they need it and they need it because it's going to help you in the future.

Our children.

There's just not his children.

This is not her children.

His children, all of our children.

And we have to start treating them that give these kids to resources that they need.

And I think we will see a different Chief Calderon.

What happens when a takeover does happen?

How should local police be responding?

Well, first, you know, I think that if we stay ahead of it by identifying.

>> You know, there's usually one or 2 people that driving that the other right.

And I think that by utilizing the outreach Violence, Interrupters and organizations sometimes it's better start off with, you know, our partners, you know, but combine it combined that conversation together.

I do believe that if we approach these young teens together, think we have a better successful rate of getting them to do what we ask to do with it.

You know, weather stop that behavior and or to what time are you going to be out here?

If they're not conducting any criminal activity?

You know, they're hanging out, hey, that there's nothing wrong with that.

But let's have that conversation.

How long are we looking stay here?

But it takes both, you know, both of you know, the police department and people in community to speak with them had that conversation.

And just to to mention, you talked about this percentages of those ages.

So as a commander of the 10th district every month I 2 teams meetings.

I had 17 and under conversations with different people in and around the area will can you can so used to as you can do you do you have anybody that wants to join conversation once a month?

And I will discuss some of these things, including some of that at that time.

The biggest thing was carjackings.

you know what was going on.

And so it started now with teen takeovers.

But having that conversation with somebody as she to, Carol just mentioned, it can take the loneliness and the 2, one and interact with people too.

Maybe something positive.

And if you assist law enforcement we can provide like a place to go play by.

I remember these have the gender.

You can't.

Hey, look, there's the play basketball on Thursday nights.

says police telling them, hey, look, there's an opportunity tonight to go play basketball have that conversation fed You can't it.

That's like to add to that.

I was the deputy chief of area for commander, 15.

When I would get intelligence of a gathering where with where it's going to be hailed, I will provide that information.

So those social organizations, they then will provide pop ups in those areas.

So when those gatherings would occur, that space was taken with something positive.

And then we saw in that in that area to particular time somewhere reductions in those areas.

>> So I think being able to trust departments.

Until you don't not able to trust them.

And being able communicate with these issues are I think you'll see a lot a lot different reaction I think just sitting at the table here just talking about it.

We have to have more of will the eye because more a night to honor.

And I I've got one for you in a second country come back to you.

But look, so we talk about these groups of young people gathering in public spaces, nothing new, right?

And I'm thinking all the way back to the exonerated 5 formally known as the Central Park 5 and how they were considered to be wilding at the time.

>> they were implicated in a crime and they were part of a big congregation of young people in Central Park.

Then are we seeing something fundamentally new lake with today's trends, Bradley, with all of this, or is this sort of the latest?

Pete, you know, latest version of what young people have always done when they're seeking activity thing to do.

This is nothing new.

>> I mean, you can go back to the 1960's and when everything was going on in the identical and a lot of ways to what's happening now, socially, politically economically, there was so much going on.

The young people were joining gangs, getting involved there in the streets are right there.

All types of things happening and what happened was or did the city organized youth Outreach Street outreach programs, activities, employment and being in a also what they did that what we had now with mental health support services and the wrap around services is so there's nothing new under the sun.

reality is that is how we're going approach it.

And I think that we have an opportunity not to be reactive, but to be proactive.

it's not a matter of when if there's going to be another of it, it's they want do.

There will be it's Monday.

Katrina, we've got about 30 seconds left as want to about that indigenous leadership in key for.

>> Community organizations like an activists to have leadership that has from those communities where those have communities has.

The experience is that, you know, from being on the other side of of the right thing to do to, you know, now being on this side of doing the right thing.

And very important to have that with those kind of folks in front of young people, you know you and then that way, those relationships with law enforcement, it extends into that because then you have a karaoke and kick an event law the law enforcement, police officers Africa the state's governor Cooper to ready voices.

Yeah, that's where we'll have to leave it.

Thanks to all of you for