DETROIT – While Detroit broke all records for NFL draft attendance without any significant crime issues, the reality is shooting/homicide numbers were already down in the city by 28%.
The bigger story is the drop in those same numbers in select areas of Detroit where community groups working to prevent violence are on the street.
Alia Harvey-Quinn’s Force Detroit is one of those groups. Where her people are, those same numbers are down 44%.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan recognized the excellent work she and four other community groups have been doing.
“It works because all humans, at the end of the day, just need three sand things love, care and kindness,” Harvey-Quinn said.
Force Detroit has a staff of 15 working in their designated area. They have identified young men trapped in an ongoing violence cycle and reach out to them daily. At first, the emphasis is on conflict resolution.
“National data suggests in any given city there’s less than two percent of the population that is willing to pick up a gun, shoot it, and do it in a recurring basis,” Harvey-Quinn said.
Once that relationship is established, Force Detroit goes further by offering educational and work development opportunities, all under the auspices of older men who have been in their shoes and want to help them make better choices.
This is the first time the city of Detroit has put money into violent crime prevention efforts like these.
Last year, Duggan announced the city would be putting $10 million into funding this effort.
Duggan didn’t tell the groups how to do it, just that they would be judged by the stats.
The groups that used this personal approach saw major reductions. Groups that relied on enhanced CB patrols weren’t nearly as successful.