A crowd of about 100 people, including faith-based leaders, community activists, cure violence advocates, and several family members who have lost loved ones to violence gathered for a “Safer Streets Community Rally” outside the Kingsbridge Armory at West Kingsbridge Road and Reservoir Avenue in Kingsbridge Heights on Tuesday, March 10.
Among the group were members of the cure violence groups, Bronx Rises Against Gun Violence (B.R.A.G.) and Release the Grip / Bronx Connect (R.T.G.). Both groups are part of the city’s crisis management system run by the NYC Office to Prevent Gun Violence, and are programs designed to work with young people, residents, community-based organizations, and the public to promote safer streets and new norms where violence is not accepted.
B.R.A.G. uses the Cure Violence (CV) evidence-based anti-violence model that originated in Chicago, Illinois. The goal is to identify violently injured youth who are at risk of retaliatory violence, work with victims and their families and friends to help prevent future violence and provide links to resources and more. B.R.A.G. also mobilizes residents to raise awareness and promote non-violent norms.
The team mainly comprises credible messengers, people from the impacted neighborhoods who can build a good rapport with youth and other residents due to their prior history of engaging in activities that exposed them to risk of involvement in the justice system.
Other groups represented at the rally included Our Bronx, formerly Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition, Bronx Community Boards 7 and 8, The 4 Bronx Project, as well as teens from the Kingsbridge Heights Community Center. Bishop Boyd Singletary, senior pastor of the Alpha and Omega Church located in the South Bronx, told the crowd, “We are not just here to point fingers, but we’re here for solutions.” He added, “We’re calling for an end of gun violence, not just gun violence, but all types of violence.”…