Fighting the Mafia on Its Own Turf

Many young Latina women live their lives in fear of gang violence. The Montgomery County Street Outreach Network rescues girls in danger and offers services to them in order to help them change their chances of success.

In El Salvador a nonprofit partners with employers to find jobs for gang members who want a way out of that life. It's a key component to helping people escape gang violence, although companies must work with churches and community groups to get the former gang members job training and to negotiate their separation with the gang leaders. They must also convince their fellow companies this is a viable solution, as well as their own employees, who will work with the former gang members.

In Jackson, Mississippi, a series of community-led cooperatives are creating opportunities for affordable home ownership. This is part of a trend across the country to create community land trusts. They are financed through donations, other community businesses, or commissions. Though each land trust faces hurdles, they are collectively allowing more access to wealth and ownership in historically low-income neighborhoods.

A food hub in Spokane, Washington, is providing a marketplace where fresh, local food is accessible from multiple small farms in one convenient location and website. LINC gives farmers access to a market of consumers without the hassle of deliveries, cultivating business, or staffing booths at farmers' markets. The food hub is helping strengthen the small farm economy while promoting access to fresh foods.

Advance Peace mentors young people at risk of committing or suffering gun violence, guiding them through a "life map" process to exit street life and set goals for a safer, healthier future. The program, which started in Richmond and has expanded to other cities in California and beyond, contributed to a 22% decrease in gun homicides and assaults in an 18-month period. The decrease was 39% in the first targeted neighborhood. Mentoring includes linking youth to cognitive behavioral therapy, jobs, and field trips to expand their experiences. When they meet certain goals, they get paid a "life map allowance."

Gun homicides in Durham increased an alarming 20% in 2019, but one bright spot was the county public health department's Bull City United program. Since 2016, BCU is credited with reducing shootings by 28% in two areas where it was deployed. BCU follows the Cure Violence model, a violence interruption strategy using mediators, sometimes former gang members, to intervene face to face when disputes seem headed for gunfire, offering services to help young people. This public-health model of stopping the spread of violence can fail if used in a transient neighborhood lacking community organizers.

The Wraparound Project at Zuckerman San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center turns gunshot victims' hospital stays into "a teachable moment," by providing them with services aimed at helping them avoid a repeat injury. Getting shot once is a key risk factor for a second injury, particularly for gun violence's most common victims, young Black men. Wraparound is one of the nation's oldest hospital-based violence intervention programs. It has helped about 850 clients, mostly with mental health counseling, housing, and jobs. The program is associated with a decreased reinjury rate in San Francisco.

A coalition of groups advocating for young girls of color succeeded in winning new policies and financial support to combat sexual harassment on public transportation. By surveying middle and high school students about their experiences, the groups behind the "Not One More Girl" campaign convinced Bay Area Rapid Transit system officials to install posters, make reporting of incidents easier, and pay for non-police "transit ambassadors" and crisis intervention specialists to patrol trains.

Violent clashes between farmers and cattle herders that have claimed thousands of lives have largely ceased in Otukpo, thanks to a peacekeeping process that resolves disputes and is based on a shared recognition of two groups' humanity. The process imposed rules in an otherwise unruly system in which Fulani herders' open-grazing cattle destroyed crops, leading to violence. Negotiated leases and dispute-resolution mechanisms, governed through monthly meetings, have resulted in only one death since 2018, while surrounding areas continue to suffer many casualties.

The Blueprint for Peace is a community-driven gun violence prevention plan aimed to reduce gun violence and fatal shootings. The Blueprint works by creating partnerships within the community, from police officers and first responders to individuals and those working in public city offices to become educated on the importance of trauma-informed care.