More States and Cities Funding Community Intervention
Posted June 23, 2020
Sherman Spears’ Inspiration -
Sherman Spears in 2013
A July 2019 article in The Trace opens with an excellent summary of how Oakland’s (and Youth ALIVE!’s) Sherman Spears was inspired to create our Caught in the Crossfire hospital-based violence intervention program, which today is seen as one of the most effective approaches, not only to preventing violence, but to helping victims begin to heal their trauma. Read about Caught in the Crossfire here. Read the entire article in The Trace about what happens when prevention funding and support truly get to the people who need them: What Gun Violence Prevention Looks Like When it Focuses on the Communities Hurt Most.
Graduating Teens On Target (TNT) youth leaders from East Oakland, Gregory Hampton (Castlemont Hight) and Seven Curley (Fremont High), were guests on KALW’s Your Talk Radio, where they discussed the impact of violence against people of color on and the lack of justice for victims of racist violence. Listen to their comments here.
“A riot is the language of the unheard.” - Martin Luther King Jr.
Youth ALIVE! wholeheartedly supports the protests and the demands for justice and police accountability. An unacceptable status quo, where over a thousand Americans – and thousands more worldwide – are killed by police every year, has made these protests necessary. Youth ALIVE!’s vision of communities free from violence is incompatible with a justice system that allows police to kill unarmed people of color without being held accountable.
TNT Youth Leaders on Violence Prevention During the Pandemic
Posted May 29, 2020
TNT Voices & Insights -
TNT youth leaders from Castlemont and Fremont high schools were asked by Youth Today to give their thoughts on life during the pandemic and especially on violence an violence prevention in this difficult time. As always, they had lots of good, thoughtful things to say. Read the article here.
Hospital-Based Violence Intervention in The Guardian
Posted May 4, 2020
Early Intervention Brings Victims Hope -
An article in The Guardian features illuminating interviews with two former victims of gun violence who were clients of Youth ALIVE!’s Caught in the Crossfire (CiC) hospital-based violence intervention program (HVIPs). CiC was the nation’s first program to recognize the benefit to young victims of having someone from their community, who understands the effects of deep trauma, to support them on their very difficult path to healing. Now staff from HVIPs, as they are known, step into victims’ lives in dozens of cities across America (for info, see the website of The Health Alliance for Violence Intervention, aka The HAVI). More and more the nation sees gun violence as a public health issue that can be solved through a public health approach, and through healing. Caheri Gutierrez (former YA! Teens On Target violence prevention educator) and Jeremy Posey tell their emotional, painful, triumphant stories of violence and a fight to get back to life. YA Intervention Director Kyndra Simmons is also interviewed. Kyndra had this to say:
TNT youth leaders Greg and Jackie were interviewed on KPFA Radio’s UpFront program in March to talk about life for young people in East Oakland during the shelter-in-place era. They were calm, wise and engaging and showed what true leadership sounds like, by bringing solid information, helpful suggestions and honesty. Their segment starts at 19:55 and goes for about 10 great minutes. Give a listen here - KPFA - Upfront.
Youth ALIVE! Policy and Advocacy Manager Gabriel Garcia will speak live from Sacramento via Zoom on Tuesday afternoon, April 21st at 4 p.m. to inform us on the state of the State Legislature during the Covid-19 shelter-in-place era.
Violence is a public health issue. The best way to prevent or reduce violence, and to sustain that reduction is to treat violence as an epidemic, to pay attention to those who suffer, to heal the trauma that acts like a virus in its rapid and virulent spread. Our goal is not only to get the world to see violence as a public health issue, but also to get those who work on the front lines to heal victims, like the Intervention Specialists in our Caught in the Crossfire program, to be seen as healthcare professionals, and to be reimbursed for their care through traditional medical reimbursement systems. In this we are making progress, through the leadership of Health Alliance for Violence Intervention, formerly the NNHVIP, now known as The HAVI. This paper, published in The Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, from Johns Hopkins Press, and co-authored by Youth ALIVE! Executive Director, Anne Marks, explains the process and why the professional designation is important to organizations, providers and victims.
