The vote came after supporters had packed City Council chambers to voice concerns about rising violence in San Bernardino, which, as of this writing, has seen 52 homicides this year. At the Oct. 10 Council meeting, Marciano Avila, Director of Restorative Justice for the Diocese, read the names of all of those murder victims. Meanwhile, members of Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC), held up a display of white and red colored sticks symbolizing the number of those lost to violence in the past decade and those murdered this year, respectively.
The vote of the City Council was to pursue a $175,000 contract with California Partnerships for Safe Communities to implement Common Ground for Peace, which has been utilized with success in several other crime-challenged cities under the name Operation Ceasefire.
“We are pleased that the City was willing to take this initial step to address the terrible loss of life that is happening in San Bernardino with a new approach and a new spirit that Common Ground for Peace represents,” said Avila. “The community has been of one voice in asking our government leaders to look at this program.”
Led by ICUC, faith and community leaders in San Bernardino have been lobbying City leaders to secure funding to launch Common Ground for Peace. This has included holding monthly Night Walks in areas of the city plagued by violence, and holding meetings with city and police leadership.
The method of Common Ground for Peace involves:
• The use of in-depth qualitative and quantitative data to map local violence to guide and inform intervention efforts.
• Respectful face-to-face communication with the community and law enforcement to deliver encouraging nonviolence messages.
• High risk individuals are given an alternative to leave their violent lifestyle behind through a process of rehabilitation and training.
This approach has been used to effectively reduce the number of fatal shootings in several California cities including Stockton (55% decrease), Oakland (30% decrease), and Richmond (60% decrease).
“Common Ground for Peace is a step in the right direction,” said Avila. “Each additional name of a murder victim that we read at our monthly walks is one name too many. There are too many lives lost needlessly and too many families grieving in our midst.”