by Diana Pando
For many youth living in the city, violence is an everyday reality. According to the Chicago Tribune, “In the first ten days of 2016, three times as many people were shot in Chicago as in the beginning of 2015.” While the issue of violence in Chicago has gained local and national media attention, it has overlooked organizations working to provide solutions against violence.
The Resurrection Project’s (TRP) Safety Initiative is working in different communities to provide solutions and create a culture of nonviolence. Currently, TRP is working with 300 students from several schools who are learning nonviolence through their community peace education programming. Their most recent event included a Youth Peace Safety Walk and Assembly Celebration in the Back of the Yards neighborhood.
The event brought together over 100 youth representing Daley Elementary School and Richards Career Academy High School. Youth held up signs that read, “No Violence, Give Peace A Chance,” as they marched with parents and adult allies at Cornell Square Park. For many of these neighborhood youth and their parents, it is the first time they participate in a peace safety walk.
The goal of the event was to promote peacemaking and nonviolence, especially as questions of violence are at the forefront of so many Chicago headlines. TRP is taking the lead to build healthy communities through safety initiatives that activate youth and parents toward becoming agents of change.
After the Peace and Safety Walk, students gathered in the gym for a special assembly celebration. “The principal, teachers, and student leaders shared testimonies about what they have learned regarding peace education,” said Henry Cervantes, TRP’s Safety Organizer. “They also shared their visions for nonviolence in the broader community.”
During the summer and school year, TRP staff leads peacemaking and nonviolence trainings for youth. Students learn and understand how and why conflict occurs. Youth learn how to de-escalate problems and find common resolutions.
At the event, students proudly showed off their certificates of achievement for completing TRP’s Peace Education Program. The event concluded with a screening of The Children’s March, the real story of how young people in Birmingham, Alabama brought violence and segregation to its knees in 1963.
The Cornell Square Park District, the staff of Alderman Willie B. Cochran of the 20^th Ward, and Peace Officers of the 9^th District Chicago Police Department also participated in the event. “This is the first of many youth peace outreach events TRP will be hosting in Back of the Yards,” said Henry.
Other TRP safety initiatives included a Father’s Peace Conference in another partner school on Chicago’s southwest side that engaged fathers in peace efforts that impact their children and community as a whole. “It’s wonderful to have dads who are backing us up in this fight,” said Henry. “They are the ones modeling peace and nonviolence in our communities.”
During the summer, TRP will also hold its annual Resurrection Basketball League (RBL) street tournament that takes place throughout the Pilsen community every Friday throughout the summer months. Learn more about TRP’s Safety Initiatives…
The Resurrection Project is committed to doing more in five years than in 25 years by increasing all of its programming and providing solutions to community problems ranging from safety to housing to immigration. These programs are generously funded by The McLaughlin Faith Foundation.