How can Chicago stop the flow of illegal guns into the city? Perhaps Twitter has an answer.
City officials recently asked Chicago area residents to tweet their insights and ideas for curbing the availability of illegal firearms, using the hashtag #whatifchicago. The initiative serves as a lead-in to Chicago Ideas Week, an annual event that encourages creative minds to facilitate change through the sharing of ideas.
Kevin Hauswirth, social media director for the city, calls the campaign an example of “the potential power that social media offers city government.”
Over 1,000 tweets sporting the hashtag have been written since the campaign’s launch on Sep. 27. Some people appear to offer constructive ideas, while others have decried the anti-gun sentiment to be unconstitutional.
“#whatifchicago – Illinois passed the conceal and carry law like other states” tweeted @mustbejosh
“#WhatifChicago took a holistic approach to ending the violence. We need resources in our neighborhoods so it is not attractive to join gangs” tweeted @shanekalstanley
“#WhatIfChicago realized that a well armed society was a polite society and decided to honor the second amendment” tweeted @ckeller52.
A number of people used the hashtag to discuss non-gun-related problems in the city or just to display their humorous side.
“#whatifchicago didn’t have corrupt officials running their city” tweeted @leland1001.
“#whatifchicago just played bob marley in the streets for a week straight? just to see how everybody feel? and then for a month?” tweeted @kellydownes1.
“#WhatIfChicago hired people smart enough to realize Twitter isn’t going to solve the problem of crime?” tweeted @darrenmarlar.
The most innovative tweets will be collected and discussed at a Chicago Ideas Week panel on Oct. 11.
Photo via TechCocktail/Flickr