On April 16, mothers whose children have died in unresolved violent crimes paraded their grief through the streets of Corona, Queens, demanding justice so that no more victims may die as a result of violence in the streets.

Only they understand the pain of wounds that can never heal after living through the worst nightmare that a parent can have, burying a child. That is how they speak of it among themselves, the mothers of Manny Mayí, Randy Collado, Paul “Dude” Massard, Michael Berríos, Alejandro Brito, Natalie Guzmán, Manuel Chametla, Alexis Fermín, and José Liz, Jr., all of them victims of violence in Queens County.

“My son was crucified, beaten with bats, and God will never forgive that,” said Altagracia Mayí, in tears, recalling her son’s tragic death 14 years ago. Minutes later, Mayí recovered the fortitude which characterizes her as a person, to give strength to other mothers whose cases are more recent.

“I tell them they have to fight. I’ll die before I’ll let my son’s death go unpunished. I want them to have the same strength and courage I have had in order to forge ahead,” she declared in front of the house at 10813 34th Avenue in Queens, the place where her son died after being chased by a gang for 16 blocks in what is alleged to have been a race crime.

The annual “Stop the Violence” march follows the route the Dominican youth Mayí was forced to take, running for his life when he was 19 years old.

City Council members Hiram Monserrate and Charles Barron and Assemblyman José Peralta accompanied the mothers and relatives to push for and exhort the support of other political leaders for the creation of youth development centers that would allow young people to stay off the streets and give them something to do especially during the nighttime hours.

“We call on our community to stop the violence and love each other. We especially need the help of youth to carry this message,” said Monserrate.

The marchers also demanded more police resources for the Queens community, so that those responsible for the deaths of these young people might be prosecuted.

“The pain is too much. No one is in prison for this crime and I am very frightened, but I am not going to stop looking for those responsible of this crime until I die,” said Annette López, the mother of Berríos, who was stabbed to death on December 12th of last year.

The relatives of the most recent victims of street violence, Liz and Fermín, who were murdered by a group of attackers on March 12th, made no speeches. In an act of silent solidarity, bearing their obvious affliction, they laid red carnations at the place where Mayí died.

“We are devastated,” said Digna Vicentelli, Fermín’s aunt, who was marching alongside Moraima, Elmarisa and Ronald Liz.