Saturday, March 5, 2011

CeaseFire Coming To Uptown

Per a press release from Cmsr. Bridget Gainer and Organization of the NorthEast:

Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer secured funding to enable O.N.E to administer a CeaseFire program in the Uptown community. The residents of Uptown struggle daily to overcome violence, shootings and gang activity in their neighborhoods. The CeaseFire model works with community-based organizations such as O.N.E. to develop and implement strategies to reduce and prevent violence, particularly shootings and killings, by relying on outreach workers, faith leaders, and other community leaders to intervene in conflicts, or potential conflicts, and promote alternatives to violence.

There'll be a press conference in the lobby at Truman College (1145 W Wilson) at 10am on Monday, March 7th.

Update:  Channel 7 News did a report on this Monday.

13 comments:

  1. This is fantastic news! From what I have heard, they have done some excellent work in Humboldt Park. Fingers crossed!

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  2. Either Jamiko Rose of O.N.E. forgot to voice her usual thing of labelling this a racist classist attempt to surreptiously gentrify Uptown...or she has finally gotten it through her thick skull that there is a real problem needing to be fixed.

    I applaud Commissioner Gainer and CeaseFire for taking on the problem of violence in Uptown, and I hope that O.N.E. avoids their usual divisive rhetoric--let's make this work for everyone.

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  3. Ms. Jamiko Rose, with the Organization of the Northeast, (O.N.E.) the not-for-profit organization who handled CeaseFire's financial affairs in Rogers Park, was a complete and utter failure.

    Get ready for a bunch of useless "after the shooting happens" circle prayers.

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  4. O.N.E. involved with CeaseFire? Waste of time. Actually it will be counterproductive.

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  5. A little background on the Ceasefire audit issues from a couple of years ago.

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  6. You would be far better off having a well developed summer program in our parks and playgrounds for teen boys age 11-17. It would be great if you could put team some of the kids from Rickover Naval Academy with neighborhood kids to build leadership skills, play sports and other non-athletic games like chess, and show these kids there are other opportunities than gangs.

    I'm afraid with O.N.E. running the show that you will get little but anti-police propaganda. Unless you get Cease Fire outposts at Sheridan and Lawrence and Broadway and Wilson, little or nothing will happen.

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  7. Do these afterschool programs really work? While I agree that a lack of alternative activities is one reason for gang membership, gang members can also make a good chunk of change...I think this is the main reason kids join gangs. Why work at McDonald's for minimum wage when you can put in work and make much more?

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  8. This is a horrible program, not only for the state budget but for the commnunity. Expect to see your local gang members receive food from this program and sent away into the gang life with a full stomach.

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  9. hopefully our new alderman will be able to ensure that this program is held to some standard of accountability. i know that James Cappleman has pushed for accountability for social services. as a social worker, i'm sure he has some good insight.

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  10. People, when are you going to realize that the alderman doesn't control everything? You are all going to be sorely disappointed when you figure out that the newly elected alderman won't be making magic all over uptown.

    Whomever is elected I doubt will serve more than one term because expectations are too high.

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  11. Interesting that the county had money to fund this program while the Juvenile probation officers who work Uptown are facing either 10 furlough days or layoffs.

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  12. "Uptown," I agree that there's too much that needs fixing for it to be magically made better overnight. It's my opinion that, even if the new alderman hits the ground running an hour after being sworn in, it'll be a couple years before we start seeing substantive changes.

    However, I disagree about the one-term projection. I think, after four years, Uptowners will be asked to look at Uptown in 2015 and compare it to 2011. Will it be better? Less crime? Fewer shootings? Cleaner? Fewer empty storefronts? Less divisiveness? Better test scores?

    I'm not looking for 2015 Uptown to be like Andersonville, and even Avondale. But if I see a change for the better, I will vote for whomever is alderman again, and let him or her continue the job that was started.

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  13. Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.


    -Buddha

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