Violence interrupters walking Lake Street in the Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis in December 2020. Photo by Will Jacott/Minnesota Reformer.
This story was published in partnership with The Trace, a nonprofit newsroom covering gun violence.
At the height of the racial justice protests in 2020, the Rev. Jerry McAfee was on the front lines in Minneapolis. When residents filled the streets after George Floyd’s murder, McAfee and other veteran peacemakers handed out food, broke up fights, and tried to dissuade further violence. In one case, they formed a protective escort for police officers moving through a tense crowd to reach a stabbing victim. At that point, McAfee had walked the city’s most gun violence-stricken areas, working with active and former gang members to prevent shootings, for nearly three decades…