‘We Have to Try’ A conversation with Sister Susan Walsh, RSM
Sister Susan Walsh, RSM, is the acting president at Mercy Career & Technical High School in Philadelphia. She has served in Philadelphia for most of her ministry with the Sisters of Mercy and has borne witness to the impact of gun violence on students and the neighborhoods over the years. A student from Mercy Career & Tech was killed by gun violence just last year, and his loss continues to impact peers and the school community. Here she speaks in her own words about how gun violence has impacted her students and the city where she ministers.
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have three students who passed away [due to gun violence]; one, Jeremy, on Christmas Eve two years ago. His classmates are still here. Another student was killed in crossfire. And another died during his senior year. They were here today, gone tomorrow. There is a whole lot of violence in Philadelphia. A whole lot of gunshots heard by students. Gun violence often impacts our students and their families. Some of our students have lost parents. It’s a huge situation. We’re a vocational school, and we draw students from all over the city. I watch the news and hear a 16-year-old [was shot], and I wonder if it’s one of my students or somebody connected to them. Students and families are scared of public transportation. So they end up being isolated at home, unable to be children and do what they would like to do. 8
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Illustration for the 5th Sunday of Lent, Year B. By Father Maximino Cerezo Barredo, CMF
It’s hard for me to hear that students feel like they won’t live past 20. That’s real, and they have examples of that [in their own lives]. We know as a society what’s wrong. I don’t know if it’s too overwhelming to fix, but you have to try. You have to be proactive. The students and parents want to have a good education, and they want their school to be safe. We’re one of the only schools that have social workers and guidance counselors. We go into homes and help families pay rents and things. The problem is bigger than the kids in the seats. There needs to be more jobs and
better jobs, or [selling drugs] is going to be a lure. You’re not going to make the same money at McDonald’s. There’s this desperate pull that preys on younger, innocent kids. It feels overwhelming to me, but it’s also satisfying to do the work we do here [at the high school]. It’s hard for people to want to be teachers. People aren’t applying [for open positions], particularly in Philadelphia. Teachers don’t want to be killed in a classroom. And don’t tell me that teachers are going to be armed: I will never ask anybody to do that. The possibility of crossfire is not worth it. And that’s what it looks like when both sides are armed.