The audience gathered in the Capitol rotunda Monday for Wisconsin’s annual celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fell silent as Bernice Parks accepted the annual MLK Heritage Award on behalf of her daughter.
Sandra Parks was killed this March at the age of 13 by a stray bullet fired into her home in Milwaukee. She had previously won an MLK essay contest, which she used to write about gun violence.
“Please, please, I’m begging you, don’t forget my baby,†Bernice Parks said through tears. “I still look at her picture and say, how could this have happened? I still want answers, Milwaukee, I still want answers. But at the end of the day, Sandra’s a blessing … she’s going to continue to be a blessing on all of us.â€