CeaseFire, program to lower violent crime, is launched

16th April 2012   ·   0 Comments

By Travis M. Andrews
Contributing Writer

The next New Orleans murder will bring the count to an even fifty, if that hasn’t occurred by the time this article is printed.

The murder rate in New Orleans has been a hotly discussed issue, earning a Gambit cover story, an unexpected speech from a Tuskegee Airman in the mayor’s office during an honoring ceremony to debate over the live murder counter N OLA.com recently installed. It also has brought a wealth of non-profit organizations aimed at lowering said count, including CeaseFire New Orleans.

On April 4 at the Israelite Baptist Church, Mayor Mitch Landrieu and Criminal Justice Commissioner James Carter announced that CeaseFire New Orleans, a violence prevention and interruption program, had finally launched.

CeaseFire, a program created in Chicago, is based on the philosophy of violence interrupters, who are generally former offenders who attempt to intermediaries between warring parties to prevent violence, especially retaliatory violence rooted in vengeance.

The program seeks to predict where violence will begin and stop it at the source, before it spreads. According to researchers at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, the program reduced violence crime in Chicago. Which Landrieu said is his first priority.

“My number one priority is reducing violent crime and murder,” said Mayor Landrieu. “We know that we can all be safe if we work together to help change behaviors that result in violence. The culture of death and violence is not acceptable. Together, we must reject violence as an acceptable response to solving problems.”

In addition to the violence interrupters, the program will employ outreach workers who will help mentor individuals at a high risk of being involved with violent crime. The outreach workers will help them find jobs and community assistance.

According to CeaseFire press release: “Violence interrupters are responsible for developing intelligence regarding potential conflicts and possible violence or retaliatory incidents and intervene in situations of potential violence to interrupt the deci­sion‐making pathway that leads to violence. Outreach workers are credible messengers who case manage some of the highest risk individuals for being involved in a shooting or killing. Case management includes regular contact employing cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to change behaviors, referral to services, and conflict mediation.”

Currently the program consists of four outreach workers and four violence interrupters.

“It is about stopping the shooting; it is about stopping the killing,” Landrieu said. “Because if you can stop that first, it gives you a little breathing room to work on … jobs, economic viability, education, health care, all of those things

He pledged $750,000 for the program in the Central City and St. Roch neighborhoods, to be managed by the Urban League of Greater New Orleans.

New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins, who has worked with the program, said he “admired their leadership and dedication to save their city and its youth.”

He said money is not the only solution to the crime problem.

“While we work to reduce violence in our streets, we must also encourage our youth to help their neighbors and neighborhoods become stronger and better,” Jenkins said. “It does not take a lot of money; it takes a lot of love.”

The program showed results in Chicago, and Commissioner Carter thinks that New Orleans can see the same improvements, something that would be welcomed by all.

“One of the goals of CeaseFire New Orleans is to instill a sense of hope in this Central City community,” said Carter. “We can have a Central City free of fear, free of hatred, and free of shootings and killings. We must interrupt the violence.”

This article was originally published in the April 16, 2012 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper