It is the weekend, and we are in Chicago, having just attended the four-day 2023 AERA (The American Educational Research Association) Annual Meeting, "Interrogating Consequential Education Research in Pursuit of Truth." A few of us decide to meet for adult beverages.
The AERA hosts the largest annual meeting of educational researchers in the world, during which we share insight with colleagues, engage in conversation with scholars in our respective fields, and offer mentorship to graduate students and junior faculty. The four days are packed with educational sessions, panel presentations, and roundtable discussions. 
Dr. Adriel A. Hilton
With the conference still fresh on our minds, we ordered our beverages of choice and sat back to discuss the topics we had heard, learned, and debated over the past four days. The lights are low and the silky sound of smooth R&B is playing over the speakers as we lounge in overstuffed velvet chairs, absorbed in our friendly conversation.
Little do we know, outside our four-star accommodations in downtown Chicago, something sinister is going down. Hundreds of teens are gathering in downtown Chicago in a coordinated effort, advertised as “the trend” on social media, intent upon causing chaos. Two teens are shot. Several are arrested.
Just last summer, 16-year-old Seandell Holliday was shot and killed by another teen at “the Bean” in Millennium Park in Chicago. Mayor Lori Lightfoot instituted a curfew for unaccompanied minors, prohibiting them from entering Millennium Park after 6 P.M. Lightfoot stated, “As a city, we must ensure that our young people have safe spaces to congregate and that in those spaces they are peaceful and actually safe. I am calling on all parents, guardians and caring adults to step up at this moment and do whatever it takes to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again and to encourage appropriate behavior when our young people gather anywhere in this great city of ours.”
