BALTIMORE — Organizers of ceasefire weekend in Baltimore describes it as a "success" despite shootings that left two people dead Saturday.
"We measure success of these weekends by how many people came out, how many people got the resources they need, when somebody got killed how much love did that family get," said Co-Founder of Baltimore Ceasefire 365 Erricka Bridgeford.
Baltimore Ceasefire 365 celebrated the third anniversary of its ceasefire weekends with dozens of events promoting love, peace and hope.
The weekend began peaceful after there were no murders for more than 30 hours. However, in separate shootings on Saturday, two people were killed and several others were injured.
“For us, when somebody gets killed, it doesn’t mean that the weekend is over, it means we are called to vibrate higher and to keep working harder," said Bridgeford.
Bridgeford said hundreds of people attended ceasefire events during the weekend, which calls on the city to stop the killings for 72 hours.
“It’s a call for us to intentionally use our collective consciousness and all be peaceful together and all celebrate life together," Bridgeford said.
Earlier this week, Baltimore surpassed 200 murders, putting the city on pace for 300 for the sixth straight year.
Bridgeford said the continued violence gives her more reason to keep trying to put an end to what she describes as an epidemic.
“We’re going toe to toe with murder making sure it understands it will not have the last say in Baltimore," she said.
A recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health found gun violence was reduced by 50 percent during ceasefire weekends.
The next ceasefire weekend will be the first week of November.
