Chicago alderman sleeping in tent outside to bring attention to area violence

The alderman said his goal is to shut down the open-air drug market that is keeping community members from being able to come outside their homes

An alderman from Chicago’s South Side plans to sleep outside in a tent until the crime problem in his ward is fixed.

On Friday, Ald. David Moore (17th Ward) began camping out in a lot at 73rd Place and Racine in the city's Englewood neighborhood. He said crime has been a severe problem in his ward for the last five years, but the final straw was a shooting earlier this month that left 18-year-old Trinity Boswell dead.

“That's what (prompted me) was the voices of the residents that called me and said, ‘Enough is enough.’ And I'm asking anybody: Tell me what else I can do. I don't want to be out here sleeping… Give me another option,” Moore said in an interview with NBC Chicago.

The alderman said his goal is to shut down the open-air drug market that is keeping community members from being able to come outside their homes. He said the illicit activity has led to at least three murders.

While he was camped out in the neighborhood on Saturday night, Moore himself had to duck and cover when gunfire erupted less than a block away and someone was shot.

“We got to take a stand and say, ‘This is not right.’ The residents that do care about this block and want it cleaned up: They have that right,” Moore said.

Even still, seven people were wounded when two gunmen opened fire early Monday morning in the neighborhood, marking the second mass shooting in the city within an hour.

Along with city crews, Moore has also been cleaning up the area to disrupt drug dealers. Crews have picked up trash in vacant lots and trimmed trees to bring more light into the neighborhood.

How long does Moore plan to camp out?

“Until there's a clear strategy (to fix the problem), and we see some clear changes.”