We know that the issue of urban violence is complex. For sustained change to occur, it will take a broad, multi-layered approach that uses innovative strategies to impact public policy, increase resources, influence media, and, ultimately, change individual behavior.
Understanding these complex and dire circumstances impacting parts of the city, the Minneapolis City Council recently passed a resolution as a local call to action on the issue and it states: Homicides are the leading cause of death for Minneapolis residents between 15 and 24 years. The 65 deaths by homicide among persons in this age group between 2002 and 2004 were more than 4 times higher than motor vehicle deaths (at 15) and accidental deaths (at 14).
And looking at it from one Northside neighborhood’s perspective, the statistics get more compelling. Between August 5th & 11th (one week’s time) in the Northside’s 4th precinct, we saw: 3 homicides—8 people shot—56 reported shots fired.
How can we, as community members, take responsibility for building partnerships and creating the change we so desperately need? Working in sync with the City of Minneapolis’s Youth Violence Prevention Blueprint, a group of committed partners are suggesting a set of coordinated, innovative strategies that can lead to changes in individual behaviors. This kind of community re-education is the bedrock of a successful public health campaign.
Example of public health strategies will include:
NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center Behavioral Health Clinic will intensify its response to families in the North and Near North areas who have been traumatically impacted by gun violence by providing a free initial screening (with transportation).
We will engage all public health departments which have, or should have, the crisis in the North Minneap- olis community in their operational purview to connect them to impacted families.
As part of this coordinated effort, a neighbor-to- neighbor campaign will be implemented to create and sustain a community norm that will not allow violence to thrive. The “Don’t Shoot… I Want to Live” community campaign will be launched initially in North Minneapolis where violence has been the greatest and will draw from proven corporate marketing principles of new habit formation. Our strategy here is to utilize habit formation techniques to create new ways of thinking and generate different outcomes for communities that have been experiencing traumatic loss due to gun violence.
The following components will be included in the campaign:
Neighbor to neighbor marketing
Utilizing the faces and voices of neighbors on the Northside – from young children to our elders – we will create a series of marketing tools including buttons, billboards, bus benches/shelters, posters, lawn signs, door-to-door flyers, and bumper stickers. These materials, depicted in mock-up form here, will include the faces of actual people living on the Northside who want to stand up for the life of our community.
The goal of the marketing will be to saturate the visibility of these tools in a geographically defined area on the Northside where the violence is worst, to have the greatest impact on behavior. In this area, during the height of the campaign, you will see faces of the neighbor down your block, children at a bus stop, youth on the street corner, business owners in the community, people at their place of worship… all saying with one voice, “Don’t Shoot… I Want to Live!”
Radio and cable initiatives
The same people depicted on the print materials will also be given voice through, yet to be determined, radio and cable presence. Utilizing the local media outlets, the personal stories of loss from violence as well as vision for a transformed community will be portrayed.
Youth to Youth – School-based interventions
The campaign will be taken directly to youth in the community through schools. Classroom presenta- tions, printed materials, and a youth-focused video will be brought to Northside schools. The primary vehicle for these messages will be youth themselves. Through Northside Youth StandUp! and Girls in Action, two initiatives on the Northside developing leadership among youth, youth will lead the way in encouraging their peers to say “no” to violence and “yes” to opportunities for a positive future.
To participate in this campaign as a Northside voice, or support this effort as an ally partner, please contact the African American Men Project at 612-302-4694 or the PEACE Foundation at 612-521-4405.
A growing list of community partners involved in the “Don’t Shoot… I Want to Live” forum include: NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center, PEACE Foundation, African American Men Project, Power of People Institute, Girls in Action, Citizens for a Safer Minnesota, Mad Dads, Initiative for Violence Free Families, and Minneapolis Television Network.
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Very powerful concept.
Comment by Michelle M. — November 3, 2008 @ 10:56 am
I saw one of the “Don’t Shoot…I Want to Live” buttons on top of a Redbox at the Lake St. Cub Foods. My roommate wanted to take it, but I told her that I thought someone put it there for people to see, not take. So, she left it. I hope that a lot more people got to see it up there…it’s a message that needs to be seen!
Comment by Samantha J. — June 13, 2009 @ 2:22 am
Great initiative! How is it working? Give us a progress update. If working, are you willing to share with communities in Chicago to address the violence there?
Comment by Kirby — July 11, 2009 @ 12:53 pm
el punto de vista Competente, cognoscitivamente.
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Comment by carroll — March 20, 2010 @ 7:33 pm
Hasnt anybody noticed these shootings arent happening in white neighborhoods with upscale restaurants and high end business? Actually I was wrong, they do happen when primates crawl over on their knuckles from the ghetto to rob rich whitey! Wake up white people!
Comment by White Pride — December 7, 2011 @ 8:52 pm