Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan refused to accept an award from an anti-handgun violence group Tuesday, saying there's more that needs to be done first.
Duncan said he's frustrated with the continued violence, especially for the families of students like 17-year-old Kiyanna Salter, the unintended target of a bullet while riding home on a Chicago Transit Authority bus on Sunday evening.
"I would like all of us to remember the horror and the tragedy of the children who live in the fear of death every day," Duncan told the group.
Duncan was scheduled to receive the prestigious "Abraham Lincoln Award' from the Illinois Council On Handgun Violence for his commitment against handgun violence among students in the city of Chicago, as well as for his advocacy for stronger gun laws to protect and improve community safety.
"This is not normal. This does not happen in other civilized countries," Duncan said. "This is not Beirut. This is not Iraq. Why we allow it to happen is mind-boggling to me."
Also in attendance was the father of Blair Holt, who was shot and killed while protecting a friend on a CTA bus 18 months ago.
"Men with a heart, they don't do that, they don't put anyone else in the middle of their madness, their misery, their conflict," Ron Holt said.
A news release from the group stated that, in his 10 years on the job, "Duncan has established himself as one of the strongest leaders in the state and in the country in the fight to protect our youngest citizens from the impact of gun violence."
