Selma pastors are tired of the degradation of their city and, acting on the request of city officials, are willing to take a more active role in putting an end to the recent string of gun violence.

As part of the Mayor James Perkins Jr.’s “Mercy/No Mercy Strategy,” pastors will be spending

the next few weeks asking people to turn in their illegal guns to them with “no questions asked.”

The guns will be given to the Selma Police Department to be condemned and eventually destroyed.

During their regular Thursday gathering at Brown AME Chapel, pastors from various church denominations met with Perkins, Selma Police Chief Robert Green, Selma police officers, and District Attorney-elect Michael Jackson to find out what they need to do to encourage people to turn in their illegal guns.

“All pastors are asked to canvas the community and ask people to turn in their illegal guns to the city,” said the Rev. Coley Chestnut. “There will be drop-off site where people can bring in their guns to be condemned and destroyed by the police.”

This weekend, pastors will be recruiting their congregation to go door to door with them, asking parents to search their children’s rooms and various places around the home for any illegal guns or drugs that could be turned into police.

“Everybody is concerned about the recent crimes of violence,” Green told the pastors. “There are ways to do this safely and get officers to document and condom these weapons.”

Some pastors at the meeting expressed safety concerns when entering a strange place and handling weapons, but it was determined the risks do not outweigh the need to send a message.

“We are in the community saving business,” Chestnut told the pastors. “We are tired of a couple of kids holding this city hostage. This is not political, this is about our community.”

The mayor’s Mercy Strategy involves getting residents to turn in illegal guns to police and stop crime before it starts.

The No Mercy part of his plan would be to work with the District Attorney’s office and judges to find a way to keep criminals in jail longer after they commit a crime.

Perkins has said he wants pastors involved in his strategy because people could be more trusting of them than police officers.

The pastors will have one more meeting before executing their plan in order to work out the details and designate a drop-off site for weapons.