COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA JOINT COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY AND PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - - - Bartram Main High School Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wednesday, October 25, 2006 7:30 p.m. - - - PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN MARIAN B. TASCO COUNCILWOMAN DONNA REED MILLER COUNCILMAN FRANK RIZZO RESOLUTION 051155 - Resolution authorizing the Council Committees on Public Safety and Public Health and Human Services to hold hearings regarding the findings and recommendations of the "Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia," and further authorizing the Committees to seek advice and recommendations on how Philadelphia can reduce and eliminate crime affecting the City's youth. - - - V A R A L L O Incorporated Litigation Support Services Eleven Penn Center 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 215.561.2220 215.567.2670 2
Good evening. My name is Marian Tasco. I'm the Councilwoman from the Ninth Councilmanic District. I'm here as Chair of the Committee of Public Health and Human Services, and chairing the Public Safety Committee is Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, who will have opening remarks also. I'd like to call the Committee on Public Health and Human Services and the Public Safety Committee, Council Committee on Public Safety, to order and state that a quorum for this hearing was established at our first meeting some months ago in City Council. This meeting is one of a series that we are having across the City in an effort to discuss the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. I'd like to have the Clerk read the resolution.
Resolution 051155, a resolution authorizing the Council Committees on Public Safety and Public 3 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Health and Human Services to hold hearings regarding the findings and recommendations of the "Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia," and further authorizing the Committees to seek advice and recommendations on how Philadelphia can reduce and eliminate crime affecting the City's youth.
Thank you very much. Faheem Thomas-Childs, murdered at school, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Marion Fisher, murdered at school, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Although some try to ignore it, these two senseless killings highlight the undeniable fact that gun violence is not just a Philadelphia problem, gun violence is not just a Lancaster issue, but gun violence is a statewide crisis that affects the children and citizens of our entire state. How do we address this crisis? We must begin to change the culture of 4 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 violence in our block, neighborhood, city and state. How do we change the culture? By working together, participating in meetings like tonight's public hearing and using tools like the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia to take a short and long-term approach to dealing with this public health crisis of violence in our society. It will take our unified efforts to light the spark of activity that brings people together in our block, our neighborhood, city and state to collectively fight this crisis. In this regard, I thank you for coming out tonight and joining us in this movement for a safer Philadelphia. We will have a panel. I will introduce the panel after Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, who represents the Eighth Councilmanic District and is Chair of the Council Committee on Public Safety, gives her opening remarks.
Good 5 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 evening, everyone. As Councilwoman Tasco said, I am Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller for the Eighth Councilmanic District and Chair of City Council's Public Safety Committee. I'd like to begin by thanking those who have taken an interest in Philadelphia and its problem with violence. The fact that you are here shows that you are more than interested in the affairs of the City, you are willing to actually get out and do something. Thank you. We're here today to discuss the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia and its ten-year plan, and right now we're in its ninth year -- there's nine years left. We've just completed our first year. There's been much talk of violence in our City, from the many murders and other violent forms of crime, that we felt it necessary to convene these public hearings in the communities 6 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 to get input from our constituency. Do you know that we have reached 329 murders as of today? We have completed 298 days this year. This means that more than one person is getting killed every day. So since we only have 67 days left this year, how many more will be killed? At least 74 more, according to our track record. We're losing people here in Philadelphia just like in Iraq, and they are at war. What is the problem? We have definitely passed last year's murder rate, and it is only increasing. We need to do something now to stop the violence. I am aware that there is only so much that we can do, but together, the community side by side with elected officials, we can make a difference, and I know you care, that's why you're here today. I've been working with Councilman Clarke, and together we have introduced seven pieces of legislation 7 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 aimed at addressing the problems with violence, specifically with guns. Unfortunately, the State has the power to make these laws and they will not let us control or legislate our own gun laws. Dwight Evans has been working hard trying to get out the word in the State legislature, but we need your help. Last month, people know that there were more than 3,000 Philadelphians that rallied on the Capital steps. As you all know, we cannot legislate attitude change, but it is a start. Gun violence is only a part of what we are here for today. We are here to show our young people that they are not destined to a violent end. We want to offer them other alternatives to taking lives as a way of resolving disputes. We want to give them other options for their futures. We want to let them know that there is a bright future ahead for them and not one of doom and gloom. 8 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Our goal in holding this hearing is to make Philadelphia a safer place, a safer place to live in, a safer place to visit, a place where you can drive to work safely, and ultimately a place where children can play safely outside in front of their homes or go to school without fear of being senselessly gunned down. Again, I just want to thank everybody for coming, and with that, those are my opening remarks. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Tonight we're here because we've been traveling around the City to discuss the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. After Faheem Childs was killed, there was a call to action, and the call was answered on April 21, 2004 when Representative Dwight Evans convened an historic meeting of State legislative leaders, top law enforcement officers 9 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 from federal, state and local governments, and community leaders to discuss strategies to stop the violence that had taken the lives of too many young people. Tonight we have a panel who will give you an overview of what the Blueprint is all about. We will introduce State Representative Dwight Evans to give remarks about how he came to become involved with the development and evolution of the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. We have Alicia Jackson from MEE Productions, who is working with the Blueprint to get the word out and to develop programs that address the issues that we are concerned about. We have Jaime Beck of CHOICE, who is here to talk about how they're involved in providing the hotline for the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. They will give a brief overview. You're being passed out some 10 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 information. And then we'll ask you to give your comments on what you think we might be able to do in order to strengthen the Blueprint, how you might want to become involved with the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia to address the issue of violence in the City. I want to personally thank State Representative Dwight Evans for his leadership in this issue. In 1999 when he ran for Mayor, he was the only candidate talking about the main issue was guns and violence, but nobody was listening at that time. There were other agendas on the table, but he has that story to tell, as well as all the other stories he can talk about in terms of his involvement in the Philadelphia community. But he was right on target in 1999 talking about guns and violence, and here we are today, seven and a half years later, still talking about guns and 11 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 violence, which has become the front issue in Philadelphia. So State Representative Evans represents the 203rd Legislative District, which is in the West Oak Lane, Olney, a little bit of Lawncrest, which goes up to the Boulevard. He's been in office since 1981 and has served that district very well. He is Minority Chair of the Appropriations Committee in Harrisburg. He has brought back many dollars to the City for many initiatives, particularly the supermarket initiative, which he introduced in Harrisburg and was able to get the Governor to appropriate about $16 million to help grocery stores open up into neighborhoods where there are no grocery stores. So State Representative Evans, would you please make your comments. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: Thank you very much. I'd like to first thank all of you who have come out today for the 12 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 purpose of this discussion. I'm going to be really brief, but I want to really sincerely thank Councilwoman Marian Tasco and Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller. This is our tenth hearing. We started out in City Hall and we have been to Germantown, Olney, South Philly, Gratz, West Philly, Overbrook, Strawberry Mansion and we're ending up here at Bartram, and then I think we end up in City Hall. And I think this is extremely significant for what is taking place here by going directly to the neighborhood to talk about this problem. Historically, when we attempted to deal with this problem, we always attempted to deal with it from top down rather than bottom up. And don't, in my view, lose site based on the number of people. The purpose of this is to hear information, which the Councilpeople gather information to take it down, and then to take that information and begin to see how can we make changes in 13 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES.
051155 policies that could ultimately help by reducing violence. So that's the first thing. The second aspect of it, the Blueprint came about, as the Councilperson said, after Faheem Thomas-Childs, who was ten years old, who was in the right place, not the wrong place, he was going to school, 90 rounds was shot during that particular morning. And Jewell Williams, Representative Jewell Williams, and Jerry Mondesire of NAACP, along with others, led a march of about 12,000 people. A group of elected officials and non-elected officials, we got together and put this initiative together called the Blueprint. So far, we've invested close to $30 million in the Blueprint. For example, things such as Gun Court, AYP. Alicia will describe it to you. And we felt like this needed to be a long-term effort, because the general feeling is, we have to change the 14 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 behavior. Historically, when we approached this problem, we always tried to approach it from strictly a criminal justice approach, but we don't believe it's just a criminal justice approach by itself. It has to be a criminal justice approach and a public health approach, and they have to work together. The Councilpeople really need credit, in my view, and I got to really say this, because you got to understand something, neither one of them represent this particular Councilmanic District. They're from another part of the City, but they're here and they're really trying to organize the community to understand to have, quote/unquote, an official policy called the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. We've been working together trying to put certain policies in place that ultimately will have a lot with reducing violence. It is something, as 15 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Councilwoman Marian Tasco said, that will be a long-term struggle. I don't know which Councilperson said it, but they talked about the aspect that may it be in Lancaster or may it be in North Philadelphia, unfortunately violence is occurring every single place. Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller mentioned that we just had a huge debate in Harrisburg about gun policy. I don't think that issue is over. Unfortunately, we were not able to address the kinds of policy issues that Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller and Darrell Clarke, Councilman Clarke, wanted to happen, but I think the first step is the awareness, and I think that people are now seeing, no matter what community you're in, no 20 matter what their income level, they're now seeing that the violence can affect all of us. So these hearings, if for no 24 other reason, raises the consciousness of people in terms of trying to come up with 16 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 solutions. So I want to again thank both Councilpeople. I know it's been long, but I want to sincerely personally thank them. So what I'd like to do next is turn it over to Alicia, who will talk about the specifics of the Blueprint. Alicia.
Before Alicia begins, Representative Evans, we are going to add two more. We're going to have one at William Penn, at the request of State Representative Curtis Thomas, and the Councilwoman and I decided to do one ended up at Martin Luther King High School. We just have to get the dates. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: I didn't realize it. Well, you know, I'm happy. We can do these the rest of the year. That's a good idea. I like that.
Thank you so much, and, again, my name is Alicia Jackson. I'm here to talk broadly about 17 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia and then more specifically about the social marketing component of the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia. Before I start, I'd also like to thank the Councilpersons for their initiative, again, to come into the community, because this is really where it's going to start. I'd also -- and I continue to thank Representative Evans for his vision, as well as his backbone to say, I'm going to step out here to say I'm going to make a difference in my community, that community being Philadelphia. So with that said, he really has a commitment to not only looking at this violence issue from a criminal justice standpoint, but also from a prevention standpoint. The Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia really encompasses a number of activities. It's a broad-based multi-component effort. We're trying to 18 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 tackle, if you will, violence from a lot of different perspectives. You have, as the Representative mentioned, Gun Courts, gun policy, what we call AVRP, which is Adolescents Violence Reduction Program, YVRP, which is Youth Violence Reduction Program. So you have a lot of initiatives that are focusing on those high-risk young folk living in the City of Philadelphia to target them to say, We want to really direct some services so we can now redirect your energy. But what's most important is that we're now going to be very inclusive with trying to look at this from a public health standpoint, trying to say to the community, not let's just deal with the criminal justice aspect, let's start to focus all of our energy, if you will, on preventing violence, looking at those younger kids, looking at what is important in their lives now to say, You have some other options, let us now try to talk to you about those options, so by 19 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 the time you reach a significant age, we won't be looking at putting you in the criminal justice system. With that said, as we look to develop this public health model over the next ten years and look at violence prevention, we're looking at trying to come into the community from a social marketing standpoint initially, which is what MEE Production is spearheading, the social marketing campaign, which is to come into the community, raise awareness and provide a level of education around prevention. And what we're trying to do is actually come into the community and change our mindset, change people's norms around this particular issue. We're coming into the community from a mass communication standpoint with radio ads, print materials that we're sharing with you this evening. We'll be launching television ads the end of this month, November, so we can bring the entire community up to speed as it 20 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 pertains to prevention. We all know about the criminal justice stuff, so we're really going to focus on prevention. In addition to the mass communication strategies, we're also doing some non-traditional communication strategies, where we are taking the audience directly -- I'm sorry; not audience, but the messages directly to the audience, coming into the community, working with community-based organizations. We're working with young people via a peer outreach strategy. We have opportunities for young folk. If you know of young folk who need to have something to do with their time, direct them to the toll-free number that you will hear about and, again, let them know that we are coming into the community to talk about violence prevention, do outreach to educate folk and to raise the level of awareness, again, around prevention. 21 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 In addition to that, we're going to be organizing the faith-based community around this effort.
We're also specifically letting folk know that there are resources available around violence prevention. Initially when we started this effort, we did some research in the community to find out what violence looked like in the City of Philadelphia. We talked to parents, we talked to community-based organizations and we talked to young folk, and they articulated some things that were critical and important as we move this message through the community. One of those messages was, and why we're here tonight, is that education is critical. We're having these public hearings in formal educational institutions like our major high schools in the community. Again, education is critical for young folk. They understand they're not getting a good education, but 22 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 they want one. So it is imperative that we as adults step to the forefront to say education is critical. We're going to do that with these messages. In addition, parenting is important. We don't want to blame parents. We want to let them know that we understand the stresses that you endure on a daily basis. With that in mind, we have resources available to assist you with raising your young folk. There are resources out there. With that said, young folk really articulated that they wanted adults involved in their lives. So we as adults have to step to the plate and say we're going to take hold of this prevention piece, make sure that we are accountable to our young folk and let them know that they have other options in life, that violence is not their only option. So we'll be looking to do all of that in the community. We're coming 23 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 up with a number of activities. One that is very critical to this process and that is a part of the social marketing campaign is called the Great Vine, where we now want to push the message of the young folk who are doing some positive things in our community. We really need to understand that it's a small segment of the young folk that are involved in a lot of this violence. There are a lot of young people doing some great things, and we need to acknowledge that. com. If you know of a young person doing some positive things, put their story on the website. We will highlight them. We will get them some media attention. And then call the toll-free number. The toll-free number is a catchall, and I'll let the young lady from CHOICE here tell 24 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 you about it. It's 1-888-570-BLUE, and you'll see that on the materials. But, again, what we want to leave today understanding and knowing and being prepared to talk about is that we have to look at this issue of violence very differently. We have to now think about this issue of violence very differently. We have to start to think about preventing violence and not just responding to violence. So thank you very much, and I will pass it on to CHOICE.
First, I just want to say thank for having CHOICE here tonight. To tell you a little bit about CHOICE -- my name is Jaime Beck. I'm the Hotline Coordinator at CHOICE. CHOICE began in '71 as really a reproductive sexual health hotline. We expanded to become more of a public health hotline. We reach over 60,000 people throughout the Philadelphia area, 25 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Pennsylvania, and we hope to expand that with the Blueprint. We run four hotlines, and the Blueprint hotline is our new hotline and we're pleased to have it. Basically what the hotline does, it serves as a clearinghouse to link parents, teens to educational and family support services, connect individuals who want to volunteer or mentor and engage different community organizations to work together to combat youth violence throughout the City. We've gotten tons of people calling that want to volunteer and mentor, which is great. I actually was just saying we had a 13-year-old call the other day who wanted to volunteer, a 13-year-old girl, and she was really concerned about gun violence. Currently on the hotline we have 120 referrals throughout Philadelphia, and we are actually adding more daily. We added a library to our hotline, and we're also -- our staff is 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 attending trainings and they're actually trainings from other Blueprint organizations. So we're really going out in the community for ideas on how we can expand the hotline. Right now most of our referrals are for after-school programs. We have referrals for literacy programs, GED programs and a lot of opportunities for people that want to get involved, to volunteer, mentor. They range from sports and rec to people that want to just go out and do street outreach. So we have different volunteer programs for people. When someone calls the hotline, how we make referrals, they're really based on the caller's needs. So whether that being if they can't travel, we have places -- we can pull up places by zip code, by age, by hours that they want to get involved, after-school hours, weekend hours. So all our services are based on consumer needs. 27 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 We also believe in a holistic way to direct calls or referrals. So we really try to probe about maybe other underlying concerns, since we have about 400 referrals throughout the Philadelphia area. So if someone is calling just for literacy programs, we can talk to them about other public health issues and other places that they can go. Our information is assessed daily and can be broken down for different mapping, so that we can really track where the need is throughout the City. We can break our information down by age, race, insurance status and how actually an individual heard about our hotline. So we can really track different media campaigns. That's basically it about the hotline. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: What I'd like to do, you now kind of see how this process is working. You heard CHOICE in terms of the hotline number, Alicia go 28 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 back over the website number, you heard the website and what was described, and you heard how radio and TV are being used. So think of it in the concept that using the media to drive people and make a connection, and then CHOICE makes a link between the organizations that fit the needs of the constituency. There is another part of this initiative that is connected through hospitals, and Elisha, if he wants to speak, he's another connection. Elisha.
My name is Elisha Morris. I work for Philadelphia Anti-Drug/Anti-Violence Network. I'm the Coordinator of the PIRIS, Pennsylvania Injury Reporting Intervention System, and what we do at PIRIS, if a gunshot victim is shot and taken to one of three hospitals -- and all of this is part of the Blueprint -- either Temple University, Einstein or the University of Pennsylvania Hospital, we get in touch 29 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 with that person, meet with that person, along with PHMC, and then we provide outreach to that family, not just to the individual but to the entire family. Because what we found is sometimes there's a mom who is like, I'm overwhelmed, I'm just barely making it with two jobs and I've got a couple kids, and the drug dealers have more time with them than I do and I need some help. So we would be contacting the hotline to try and link them up with services or with services that PAAN already has to help those young people. Then another big part of what we do -- and something I just got finished doing tonight, by the way -- we go to where that individual was shot and we have a meeting, kind of like we're having tonight, only we bring like all the City agencies, all the private agencies that we can get a hold of to come out and talk about the services that they have, the idea being if we come and 30 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 make a community aware of a shooting, of the violence -- and let's be real honest, most people don't know what goes on around the corner, because we get out of our cars and we go in the house and we deal with our own stuff. But what we do is actually come out to that neighborhood. I'm on the corner with a bullhorn. Tonight is one of the last nights to do that because it's cold. Tomorrow night we're in a church at 15th and Dauphin right on the corner. But we talk about this individual being shot, the drug trade going on in the community, the gang war maybe over turf that young guys or girls are having in the community, and we then talk about the resources that are already in the community. And the Councilpeople can tell you, a lot of them, when you call their office, they can tell you stuff that's right in your neighborhood that you're not aware of because you just don't get 31 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 out to find out what's there a lot of times. And so we make that information available to the folk at the meeting. And then, in turn, we take down their concerns and we write that up, and the State Rep and the Blueprint and the City Council folk, they all get a write-up of what happened at that meeting. We have a subsequent follow-up meeting about 45, maybe 60 days after that to look at the concerns that were addressed and what we could do, what any of the City agencies or the private agencies could do to help that community. And what we find out is, a lot of people don't want to be out there doing what they're doing, a lot of the young people, but they didn't have an alternative. They just didn't see anything else. And I think Councilwoman Tasco said it. After school homework help programs are so in need, because we find that a lot of the young people can't read on the level 32 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 that they should be able to read and so the inferiority complex kicks in, and if you're standing on the corner hanging with the gang or whomever, that makes you feel like you are somebody. So our job is to really go out and engage that community. We think we're being successful because we've had a lot of young people and the family -- I don't want to leave out the family part of it, the parents, particularly the moms, who are asking for assistance -- we take them to the E3 centers.
There's one on Parkside Avenue that PHMC runs, and in that center, there are computers and you can make CDs and you can make records, and the kids find out that they can go and they can hang out in this place and do some real positive things, and it changes the outlook. So it's those kind of things that the Blueprint is doing right now through our program, PIRIS, that affects not only that young person who has been a 33 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 gunshot victim between the age of to 24, but also the entire family. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: One of the things I wanted to point out, to my knowledge -- and Councilman Rizzo just came in -- what we are attempting to do, in my view, has probably never been done in the history of the City. What we fundamentally are trying to do is to organize all of the various resources that are available and target them at different levels in terms of intervention. I mean, they require different levels of intervention. We call it primary, secondary, tertiary, and that's how we do it. So our first year, we have been working our way through a lot of the different things. You heard about the hotline, you heard about the website, you heard about communication, you heard about what Elisha has talked about. There's the Gun Court. There's a lot that we all are collectively coming 34 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 together. The other thing I want to share with you, we also are very conscious of the economic climate. We are conscious that there needs to be a creation of employment. You heard Councilwoman Marian Tasco mention the job initiative or the supermarket initiative. So far I know working with Donna Reed Miller, specifically Chelten and Pulaski Avenue, a brand new supermarket there. LaSalle University there's going to be one. We did one in Southwest Philly. We're going to do one at Progress Plaza. It's a total of over 1,400 jobs right now just in those centers that we have done. In addition to that, we are working with Councilwoman Marian Tasco -- she and I were just talking about this -- we're also trying to work around the construction industry, working with organizations called the -- Bruce Crawley has an organization called TAP Emerging Contractors, right? 35 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155
I think it's TAC, T-A-C. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: T-A-C, TAC. What we observed in the City is that we just have a lot of things that are not connected, that are disjointed. So the people who are responsible for trying to coordinate all of this for us, there's a gentleman named Dr. Fink, who is working with us, and then nationally there's a woman by the name of Dr. Stith, who nationally is working with us. She basically tells us what's going on nationally, then she tries to educate us, and Dr. Fink is working with us locally. So you can imagine if you envision Philadelphia trying to organize all of these different entities, so when you call the hotline number, they can tell you specifically in this zip code, in this police district, these are the programs available. You heard what Elisha said. 36 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 So that's how we're trying to organize, but we're trying to organize quality programs. We want to make sure that the program is quality that when you go to the program, you know for a fact that something is right. One last thing, and I want to close, over the summer a number of legislators, we did listening tours, and I was out here at the 12th Police District, I think it was, in August with, I think it was, Jewell Williams and Jim Roebuck and Ron Waters, because Ron basically represents this area. We were at the 12th Police District. And so what we have been trying to do is link the police district with the rec centers. Like there's an after-school program I think at 58th and Chester. There's an after-school program. So we feel we have a lot of programs, but we feel that the usage of the programs is not there. The whole 37 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 idea is to match up the mentoring with the program. So this effort led by Donna Reed Miller and Marian Tasco and why we've been going place by place is, we're really just trying to make this a seamless system, right? We have a lot of efforts. We're just trying to make this a seamless system. And this has never been done before. So when people magically say, Well, why have you turned this around? You know, we've been putting a lot of time in to just try to get this organized, I mean, when you think about it. And since both Councilpeople said they got William Penn, which I agree, and Martin Luther King, which I agree, there's more. I mean, there's a lot more. So as we travel, more people say to us they want us to come. So the best thing I would say in closing is, I hope you don't lose faith and don't lose a sense of hope. I 38 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 mean, I hope you don't lose that. I understand Donna gave you the statistics, and it is tough, but I hope you don't lose that sense of hope that we are trying to bring together. I'll turn it back over to the Chairpersons.
Thank you. Let me just recognize Councilman Rizzo, who is part of the Public Health Committee. Councilman Rizzo, would you like to say a few words?
Thank you, Council Lady Tasco. It's really been an honor for me to participate in every one of these events, because Marian Tasco, Donna Reed Miller and everyone sitting here, especially Dwight Evans, this is really a commitment that all of us have made and we've been to every one of these community meetings. And I hope that the next round, like Dwight just said, it's 39 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 got to grow, it will get more people involved, and if we keep working at it, we're going to fix this. We're going to make this issue something that we look back at in our lives and say, We had this problem and because we all worked together, republicans, democrats, that the problem is not a significant issue anymore. But, Dwight, I appreciate your focus on this issue, and Marian and Donna Miller, you've been so good to include me in all of these meetings, and I certainly appreciate it. Thank you.
Thank you very much. The guests who are here, if you have some comments or questions, come to the mike and address them to the Committee. We might have told you everything, but if you have something to ask. The Blueprint is really trying 40 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 to collectively bring all the resources together in a fashion where people can access those resources, and one of the things we really want to do is begin with the young children, because if we get children early, their personalities and their values are formed at a very early age. So a lot of programs are focused in on early childhood education and intervention and parenting. Because the bottom line of the Blueprint is to change the behavior, change the behavior of individuals. I had a friend tell me the other day, We got to have discipline in schools. Come on up, ma'am. So he said, We need to go back to corporal punishment. I said, I don't think we can do that. Thank you. UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's hard for me to use the mike because I 41 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 want to include the folks in the audience, but I appreciate you all coming and spending your time here. I appreciate the holistic approach. It's got to be a difficult task to bring all the resources together. I think Elisha started with my primary question. What components of the Blueprint will specifically address the broken spirits? I think the crowd is evidence of the broken spirit, particularly in Southwest Philadelphia. I came this evening all the way from West Philadelphia. Southwest is my second home, and I have led many parent orientations, after-school orientations in this very gym where there were people to the back of this room trying to get their kids enrolled in after-school programs. I worked previously at Presbyterian Children's Village, an AVRP provider. What can you do, other than changing some of the behaviors and you 42 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 talked about your social marketing plan, to heal the broken spirits of not only the parents in this community but the children? There are tons of children who have gone to more funerals in their short ten years than I have ever gone to in my entire life, and those spirits broken now grow up into adult broken spirits. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: I think everybody may have an answer. You raise to me what I think is the heart of this challenge. I would say to you I had a broken spirit prior to Faheem Thomas-Childs being killed, personally. When Councilwoman Tasco said to me that -- when I ran for Mayor, I raised this issue constantly, and what was frustrating was to raise the issue and then not make the connection and then begin to wonder why, why couldn't people see what the problem is. So personally I had like a little broken spirit. And I think the thing that made me get reconnected was 43 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Faheem Thomas-Childs. I think that got me reconnected, because I just could not understand or accept that that could occur. You know, some of us remember Marcus Yates, 1985. You can go through a whole list. And that was in, what, West Philly or Southwest Philly?
South. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: South Philly, Marcus Yates. Or Nafique Jefferson, who was in South Philly, in 1999. I remember it was right around the Mayor's race. So I admit to you that it was a broken spirit for me. So it was Faheem Thomas-Childs that was a reconnect for me. And we do have ministers involved. We have been trying to get the churches involved. We have been trying to get them connected. And one of the reasons I give Donna and Marian and Frank Rizzo credit, because when they first 44 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 started this, we did it just in City Hall, but they said, Let's really take this to the street. Now, I'm an eternal optimist, because I believe if you do this long enough and often enough, you can make that change. Now, I don't have any evidential information based on the numbers you see here, but our theory is, if we do this long enough, which the theory is ten years, that we can reverse it. I don't think you're going to do it with a piece of legislation. I don't think you're going to do it with some medicine. I think you're going to have to do good old-fashioned go to the streets, build it up and have the sense of toughness of sticking with it. I know sometimes when I say that, people look for like, Well, isn't there a quick answer? I don't think there's a quick answer to this. I mean, we've been doing this almost, what, since February? I 45 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 mean, we've kind of been out here a couple of hours each week or whatever weeks we do. We go out here and we just go from neighborhood to neighborhood and we try to tell you about those resources that we have. We have some dollars on the table from the City and the State, and we try to just go day to day and we try to organize things. So I think the spirit is a process that at least I don't have a particular answer, except what I said to you about what we got to do. If anybody else got any thoughts on it.
I just want to add, I agree with Representative Evans, and I guess I'm just an optimist, too. My spirit is broken every morning when I pick up the newspaper and read that someone else has been killed. Where do we reach children? The easiest place to reach children are 46 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 in schools and day care centers. So how do we then begin to maybe help them deal with their broken spirit? And I think we have to do it through outreach efforts where children are, and the schools are one of the most perfect places to do that. I used to go to every funeral of a young person in my Councilmanic District and I had to stop. All of the sudden, right after Faheem's, I went to the funeral at Gratz High School of the young man that was selling flowers. Remember that? And they robbed him and just shot him for nothing, because they gave him his money. When I was sitting in that church and looked at the program and looked at this kid's face, something just went through me and I knew after that funeral that I couldn't go to any more. I dreamt about that funeral. I dreamt about Faheem's funeral for months. I couldn't sleep. That breaks my spirit. 47 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 But, again, I am an adult first before I'm an elected official and a mother and an aunt and a cousin of all kinds of young people, and I guess for me what helps my broken spirit is that I know that we have to continue to fight, continue to educate, continue to reach out, and maybe one day we'll reach enough people. But to say how we can specifically address the issue of broken spirits for all the children -- and, yes, they are going to too many funerals, my God, but our spirits are broke, too, but doing this kind of hearing out in the public helps me deal with when I wake up tomorrow morning reading about 329, and hopefully tomorrow morning it's not 330, and when you go to bed, you're hoping that nothing happens overnight and you wake up the next morning, you read it, you're so disappointed, as elected officials and just as a human being. We're disappointed that this is 48 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 happening.
One thing that we're doing at PAAN -- and I just in a meeting today with our Executive Director, Darryl Coates -- that I think helps to address your question, when we have these meetings, we have the meeting because of the young person that was shot, and thank God not killed, but shot. But we then talk about, with young people in the meeting, what can we do to keep you from getting in this same situation, from getting in our program. When I took over the program on -- started it on April 24th, there were three clients. There's 70 now. That's a 2,223 percent increase. I had somebody else do the math, make sure I was right. And that weighs on you, but what I find is, there are so many of these kids that were not involved in anything wrong, they were in the right place, they were -- and it was the right time for most of them, but it was the 49 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 gang that couldn't shoot straight. But these young people have not lost faith in us, in us, because I make it very clear that it's the State House, it's the City Council, it's PAAN that's helping you, that wants to bring these services to you. And so you got to break through a layer or two -- UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Or three.
-- or three that they put up, but they eventually realize we're here to help. So that gives them hope, that there are folk like us around who are still out there helping, no 17 matter how many other young people they know who are getting messed up or getting hurt. So in a way, the PIRIS program -- and it wasn't designed to do this, but in a way, it helps to create some hope, to let them know that we're all out there fighting for them.
My spirits 50 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 are better since we've done this, and I want everyone here, this handful of people, to let you know that Dwight, Marian, Donna Reed Miller are as committed to what they're doing. I mean, you have to be impressed that with this small group here, they're as involved with you as if this whole auditorium was full. Some day it will be full, but, again, Dwight, Marian, Donna, thanks, because I believe that our spirits are going to be lifted because things are going to get better.
And I do think that what Elisha said, he pretty much took my comment, that hopefully that the general public will understand that there are people who care and who are doing something to try and make a difference in our society, and that will give them hope. But the other thing we want to do is, in order to uplift their spirits, 51 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 encourage them to become involved with what we're doing, be a volunteer, start a program in your neighborhood, work with young people or just work with your family members. If you don't work with anybody else, if you have young people in your family, work with them. I have a granddaughter and a grandson. I spend a lot of time with her, because she is important to me and I don't want her to be a victim. So I work with her work, with my grandson, talk to young people. As Dwight said, we're not going to solve this problem overnight, but through the MEE Production, what they're doing to get the message out, that there are programs in this City, that we're coordinating the programs and they're providing a way for you to access those programs through the hotline and that there is money coming into the City for these programs that they can engage in. One of the things we didn't 52 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 talk about in the recreation centers, we're opening teen centers. They have a great teen center at Simon's where kids can go. We're going to do one at Olney soon. I have one at Dorothy Emmanuel. There's one out here. So these teen centers are set up so young people can go in and shoot pool. We have pool tables. That's important. Young people like to do that. They can watch television and play the PlayStation games on the TV. They have dances at some of these teen centers on Friday night for these young people. Young people like to dance. We have to give them what they like to do in a supervised environment. So there's a lot going on, and the Blueprint is trying to coordinate all these activities, let people know that there are folks doing something, and we want them to come and get involved in what's going on. The spirit will come up as people feel that there are those of us 53 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 and other people, not just elected officials here, a lot of people around this City who are involved in this effort. So if you have an idea, a program that you want to get moving, then talk to Alicia.
And I think what's important is that the elected officials and other City leaders and community organizations can only do so much. Again, in our statement we said it takes the entire community. What else helped me, I was riding through my neighborhood the other day and a young boy stopped me and said, you know, Ms. Donna -- he was talking about police abuse, police harassment, and then he goes, I don't want to be a drug dealer, I want a job. Well, I was glad to hear that from him, but I said to him, Did you graduate from high school yet? And he says, No. I'm in the GED program. 54 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 But now I have to help get him in a different GED program, but I was glad to hear him say he doesn't want to sell drugs. First of all, he is one of the neighborhood drug dealers, but I'm glad to know that he wants to stop. When we have forums like this, it's my understanding that 7,000 flyers were given out for this meeting, 7,000 in this area, in the mail. Lots of people were outreached to. And I don't know how you guys got your information. I know that it's on the radio, on like 99, some of those stations that some of us don't listen to, at least I don't anyway, but people are trying to do things now that attracts young people. The rec centers are doing totally different, totally different activities. Teen centers -- certainly when we were growing up, there was no such thing as a teen center. We're getting ready to do a recording studio in one of the recreation centers in my district, because we know, 55 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 like you just said, Elisha, that this is of interest to younger people. So there are lots of programs that are being developed specifically targeting that particular age group to keep them involved, to keep them out of just standing on the corners with nothing to do. So Philadelphia is really spending -- there's a lot of money being put in Philadelphia to reach out and touch teens and younger children and parents. So we just want people to utilize them. Thank you.
And I just want to augment what everybody else has said, but two critical pieces here is, one, Representative Evans has stepped out in the forefront to say, We're going to do this for ten years. That's some hard labor, ten years. That's a real commitment to this effort, as opposed to saying, We'll be here, then we're going to be gone. So we're looking at some 56 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 hard work over the next ten years. So it's not going to happen overnight, but that gives us, again, hope, optimism that we can conquer this. And what helps me, because, again, as you mentioned, yeah, spirits are broken, but there is light at the end of the tunnel because we are engaging young people to carry this message to their peers to say, Enough is enough. So if we can't convey that message as adults, surely peers are listening to each other. And we have engaged right now about 70-plus young people that come into my office on a daily basis, wanting to do outreach. I'm like, Okay, let's get you out there to do some outreach. I mean, it's amazing to see how these kids want to make a difference in their lives, in their community. And we're having more orientations. If you know of young people that want to get involved in this, there is opportunity, and they can really convey this message to their peers where 57 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 it makes a difference, because they're bringing their friends. I'm like, Okay, how fast can I ramp up? And that is involving, again, adults to go out there with them, because this is a structured process. We're getting male adults involved that want to help young people. We're getting people calling the hotline to say, I want to do this work. So I think that is really what's encouraging for us, is to see there are some other young people who want to be about the business of making their community better. So hopefully that will start to heal these broken spirits, because, you're right, there are a lot of broken spirits that we have to tend to as well. So thank you.
Any other questions? You want to come to the mike or do you want to just stand up and ask your question? Identify yourself for the record. 58 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155
Hi. My name is Katrina Braxton and I'm here with my son, representing my son, standing up for my son. One thing I just -- I'm wondering, how can we get these programs out to the children? Would it be easy like to put it in the school system? I mean, I don't know how we can get it out. Or you said they have stuff over the radio, but -- REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: It varies. The hotline number, if you call, they can tell you. I know when I was out here, there is a teen center at 58th and -- what is it, 58th and Kingsessing. I can't think of the playground that's there. I've seen it. They have a teen center over there. So you could either obviously find out directly through City Hall and the Rec Department or the Councilperson, you can find that out. And usually there's a lot -- 59 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 the principal was here earlier. I don't know if they have like kind of an after-school program in Bartram. Do they? The beacon here? Okay. Then they do have it. So the objective of the City was to try to ensure that there was some form of either beacon program or after-school program in most of the schools. One of the tasks that we are working on, we're trying to work with the School District to really open up these buildings later, just like we're here, talking about 9:00, 9:30, that type of thing. We're discussing that with the School District, with the idea of the school -- because the school really is, when you think about, there's schools in every neighborhood. So the school is really the anchor. It's the one place where we can do something. So we've been discussing the idea about schools being open later and being a location to take them. But the 60 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 idea is, the schools, the rec centers, churches. Churches, schools, rec centers and PALs.
I think what she's saying is, how do the young people know what programs are available. And the school is the key place to tell them. Councilwoman Miller and I were just talking that maybe during the course of the year, we get into the schools an assembly to talk about what's happening and to give them the information. And we're going to have a lot of resource information that they will get to the schools to give to the young people to take home and make them available in the neighborhoods and things of that nature.
And, Alicia, you guys are putting together a directory, correct?
Yeah. We'll be doing a youth directory, again, pushing technology. Everything will be on a little disc. Well, it's a disc that will 61 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 connect to a website. We'll be able to update this youth directory on a regular basis so you won't have to worry about printing it out. If you don't have a computer at home, you can go to libraries. So, again, we will flood the City with this disc that will connect people to resources, as well as the hotline connects you to resources. So we're just pushing those vehicles and these other vehicles, again, just to let folk know that resources are out there and they're in the community. They are in the community. So we'll be getting that information out there.
If you have community organizations that you all are bringing into your community out here, let us know. Let us connect with them. Let us maybe have a meeting with them so that they'll know what the Blueprint is about, how they can buy into the Blueprint and connect to the 62 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 Blueprint. So this is an information meeting to let people know what's going on and also listen from you what your needs are in your community.
Just thinking off the top of my head running the hotline, there are two PAL centers right in Southwest Philadelphia that are open actually until 9 o'clock at night. They have sports leagues. You could call the hotline and we can connect you. We have hours, we have contact information. Also, going back to the schools, there is actually a hotline that I don't think many parents are aware of. It's the Office of Climate and Safety and it's run by the School Board, and they actually can link parents to different programs within their school, and the hotline has that number. So, I mean, that's always a number if you call the hotline, we can link you to the Office of Climate and Safety to your school and 63 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 also different community organizations, faith-based organizations in your zip code.
Okay. Now, I just this year put him in a charter school. Now, would we have access?
You have access. It's all Philadelphia. It's not just public schools. It's all Philadelphia schools. So they service every Philadelphia student. It's actually a 24-hour hotline, so it also can work as like an emergency number, too. It's not in place of a 9-1-1 number, but it's a good way if a child is being bullied, they can track. You can call and track the progress and what steps the schools are taking to help the individual student. So it's a great number.
Yes. I have another thing, another issue. Problems 64 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 that go on within the schools, I'm finding problems not being solved the way I feel would be appropriate for solving certain problems. This is my first year I've ever encountered -- no. I shouldn't say my first year. I have encountered this on several occasions. I said should teachers be given a course on how to resolve certain problems that I don't think they have the ability to solve? I mean, they don't know how to solve it. That's what I'm finding out. They don't know how to solve certain situations, and it's really annoying. It's really bothersome being a parent. This is my youngest. I have a 26-year-old and 22-year-old twins. And I found it over the years, and it seems like it's getting worse as the years go on. The teachers are younger and my girls, they have older teachers, and these younger teachers just seem to -- I don't know if they don't have children 65 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 and don't know how to resolve certain issues. And I said, Well, should there maybe be some kind of a class for teacher training?
That's something we can bring to the School District. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: Not to speak for the School District itself, there's no question that the whole aspect of professional development is an issue, but I thought you were going in another direction, which we have Good Shepherd Mediation. I know that's an initiative we do fund under the Blueprint. The Good Shepherd Mediation I feel does a very good job, because it's something that was recommended. There's a list. I don't know if they have it, but there's a list of some programs that we do fund that kind of have, quote/unquote, the stamp of the Blueprint that we fund different organizations that we try to use. Matter 66 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 of fact, your State Rep just came in. You want somebody who is a problem-solver. Ron, what rec center were we at that had the teen center? Remember we did the tour out here a couple -- REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: Myers, 58th and Kingsessing. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: You had some other activities I know going on.
This is our State Representative Ron Waters who represents this area. Thank you for coming. You've been to others that weren't in your area. REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: I'm happy to be here. I'm happy to see you, Councilwoman Miller and my colleague and champion for the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia, Representative Dwight Evans. I think our community should feel honored that we have these distinguished people who come here with 67 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 something that they have taken all over this City, North Philly, Northwest Philly, Northeast Philly, South Philly, West Philly, West Philly, West Philly. I mean, he has been all over this City, and I'm so happy because this Blueprint touches the core of where the answer is with empowering the people, government for the people, by the people. It empowers us and it gives us a chance to be engaged. So, Dwight -- well, excuse me. I call him Dwight sometimes, but Representative Evans, Councilmembers Tasco and Miller and my friend here, Elisha, and all of you who are here answering the right questions, you got the problem-solvers right here. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: Ron, why don't you tell them a little bit about what you're trying to do with the village concept and the kids concept. REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: Right. We are setting up a model, and I shared 68 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 this with my colleague, Representative Evans. In addition to what the Blueprint is designed to do Citywide, there are, at least as far as I'm concerned, there's going to be a need to have some satellite Blueprint activities going on throughout the City, so that we can set up a network of models of what could be done in neighborhoods that could be duplicated again and again and again so that we can create safe havens that address the issues of public safety, address the issues of this right-out education, from politics to education on how to build strong communities from education, to how you could manage your money in a way where you empower yourself so that you can pretty much control what goes on in and around your neighborhoods. We don't need some of the stores opening up two and three of the duplicate stores on any one block, these take-out restaurants and some of these stop and go's. 69 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 We have to figure out how we're going to use our dollars to vote for us so that we'll say we'll support this, but we won't support that. And we'll start closing down the nuisance and unwanted public nuisance places and we'll start saying, If you open up facilities like this, we'll patronize you. But we're not going to patronize anything that somebody says that they want to provide in our neighborhoods, and we say, Sure, whatever you open up, we'll spend our dollars with you. So we have to have ways that we create education where we control our wealth, where we control our health, where we have a better way of getting rid of some of the things that cause us to die early in life, diabetes, high blood pressure. In our neighborhoods, it probably happens more than it happens in any other neighborhood. What's wrong with that? So how do we create models of 70 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 communities that are healthy and wealthy? We are not a poor people. Representative Evans, you know the statistics on this. We are not a poor people. We act like we're poor people, but we have plenty of money to spend, and we have to stop being consumers and be educated buyers. And we also have public safety, of course, and beautification, how do we beautify our neighborhoods so that they look better, so that when kids go to school, they don't walk past graffiti, they don't walk past litter, they don't walk past -- and when they get to school, we expect them to get to school and feel good about what they experienced on the way to school. No wonder they get to school and they don't feel so happy. How do we create aesthetically pleasing communities?
So this is some of the things that we're doing with our village, 71 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 because this is -- in wrapping up, I just want to say this: The old African proverb says it takes a village to raise a child, right? But we keep saying it, but we're not doing it. So I said let's take that cliche and turn it into an action word and let's do that. Let's create a village, and that's what we're doing. And with the help of Representative Evans, who has already come on board with it, it fits right into his Blueprint. So this is what we're doing. Thank you.
In the name of Elaba B. Nefferesent, the merciful, my name is Brother Steven Muhammad. I represent a group called Crossing Crescent. We're a group of black men, lead by black men, who are unapologetically Christian, unapologetically Muslim, who are encouraging black men who are Christians and Muslims to take more responsibility. 72 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 We're going in the neighborhoods where a lot of this at-risk behavior is and troublesome young people are that look like us, that are our sons and in our family and encouraging them to join the church, join a mosque, stop the killing. The Millions More Movement that we're allied with has a number of committees. One of those committees is a security committee. We just want to extend ourselves to you and to this community. One of the things we like about the Blueprint is that they're constantly saying get involved with young people. I like that. That hasn't been said, Brother. We really commend you for having the vision and the faith to put this kind of thing and make it a public policy type of issue. We're concerned about promoting to the general public in the neighborhoods the responsibility of making our own block, our own 73 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 neighborhood safe, with the help of law enforcement and with the help of other community organizations, but I'm really concerned that we do more to place the onus on everyday people to take their responsibility without demanding additional police, even though that's good in its place, but accepting what we have to do that can make a decisive difference. So we just want to say that, and thank ya'll. The question about how can you heal spirits, that hasn't typically been, from my observation, the best field or workshop of elected officials or the government or political people, but I think that when it comes to healing spirits not only of the people who are affected and witnesses of that, but to also change some minds and hearts of the trigger brother and the trigger sister who may be thinking about that, to try to have an intervention of conscience that may make them double-think that kind 74 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 of activity. So that's who we are. REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: The reason we were smiling, a number of us, and Donna Reed Miller knows about this, we were smiling because we mentioned the word "responsibility" last week. Donna, you remember that, right? So, Brother, I want to say to you, we mentioned "responsibility" last week. And Alicia has been working with Kenny, so we formed an alliance with the Million More Movement. So we don't feel that there's any walls. I want to be very clear. We feel very strongly whatever political jurisdictions, whatever boundaries, may it be from Rizzo, who is a republican, or Ron, we have traveled in districts. We have not looked at these areas and said, Well, this is somebody else's legislative district or Council district. We have just said, This is about people, and 75 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 that's what the Blueprint has been about. We have said that over and over again. We don't get in no turf battles, no 5 discussions with anybody. We just kind of come in. And then just be clear, everybody is invited, may they represent the district, don't represent the district, whatever. Everybody is invited. We do not leave anyone out. Anybody we exclude, they exclude themselves. We don't exclude anyone. And I'm glad you said what you said, because I wish I had you at Strawberry Mansion last week. I guess something was wrong with what I was saying.
Good evening. How is everybody doing? My name is Greg Brinkley and I'm from the East Falls section of the City, up in the Abbotsford area. 76 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 First of all, I do believe that we're winning this. You don't hear a lot about it. I think that the devil is loud and goodness is usually humble and subtle. But all of the marches, everything that's positive I believe serves as part of a greater whole. I think, sure, it's unfortunate that we have 300-something murders, but there's a lot of things going on and a lot of people are doing a lot of stuff, and I think we need to stay focused on that. That's not a criticism of you, my sister. It isn't a criticism, but I think for me that's how I stay positive. And my spirit can be broken if I focus on just the stuff that is the negatives that's happening and not the positive. This is my first time attending this meeting, because I'm in the correctional system. I'm a correction officer. I won't get into where. So I see a lot of the young people that come 77 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 in. I get a chance to talk to them. It's an adult facility. And when you look at their background -- this isn't an excuse, but it is a common thread that there's a lot of things that we're talking about doing that's missing. When I was growing up on the streets -- and I was with you, Representative, with the call to the old heads. That's another component, bringing the old heads back up, but I don't know -- those guys want to do that uniquely, and I'm going to respect that, but that's a whole -- that's coming into play. It is working. All kinds of groups are getting involved. This is my first time. I usually work 10:00 to 6:00. I'm off tonight and I heard about this and I wanted to come in, just add my little piece. I had a couple questions and I got some suggestions that I think can work. I'm in corrections now, but I'm an 78 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 organizer by trade. For 20-something years, I worked with the District 1199-C as an organizer, and I want to throw out some suggestions tonight on how we can further that outreach. I see a lot of stuff going on, but I just want to see if we can maybe bring it home and throw another suggestion out there. I have a question about the Think Tank that I saw in the budget. Who is this Think Tank, if I can ask it? What is the makeup of that?
Absolutely. The Think Tank is part of the Blueprint for a Safer Philadelphia, specifically the prevention component, because we needed to engage, just based on the thought process of the model that we're trying to create here, again, this public health model, something very new. We needed to engage some folk who have done some critical thinking around this issue nationally as well as locally. So in addition to Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, 79 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 who has an extensive background in this issue of violence, and her theory around, as Representative Evans mentioned, primary, secondary and tertiary, there's some other folk nationally who have been engaged in violence over the last 25, 30 years. With that said, we wanted to see if we could get them committed to what was going on in Philadelphia to say, how can we take that knowledge, those lessons learned and apply it to the model that we're trying to craft here. So we were able to call together a Think Tank, and I'm talking about some critical folk, some folk that are high powered, some folk that, again, have national presence around this issue and local folk who have been deep into this issue, I mean, just a number of years to bring their heads together to say, Take a look at what we're doing, let us know if it's right, it's wrong, how we can make it better, what changes need to 80 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 occur and, again, just mold something specific to Philadelphia. So we've had a commitment now of about folk who have been willing to 6 share their time and their expertise 7 around looking at this issue from a 8 public health prevention standpoint on a 9 monthly basis to say, here's what you're 10 doing right, here's what you're doing 11 wrong, this is how you need to tweak it, 12 this is what you need to add, this is 13 what you need to delete. 14 So we've been very fortunate to 15 get some, again, folk who have that 16 critical thinking and that expertise 17 around this issue, and we call that the 18 Think Tank. 19
Thank you. 20 REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: Do you 21 have an interest in the Think Tank? 22
Yeah, I really 23 would. 24 REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: Make 25 sure we get your name. 81 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155
Okay. One of the things that I'd like to suggest as far as outreach is, a lot of things are being done and you got the hotline, but how do we bring that hotline, how do we let people know where the hotline is? Couple suggestions I'm just throwing out there. What we would do when we went out to organize the people for new union memberships, whether it be Philly or Jersey, wherever I participated in, we would do what is known as home visits. Now, you can't do that every night, I understand that, but something the Representative here said, when you talk about those regional centers, you can pick, say, maybe -- it could be refined. Just say maybe this Saturday. You pick a group out here in West Philly and you got five, six blocks. You actually go to them and you knock on the doors. This is what we got, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, besides just their community 82 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 groups, but you actually do home visits and you can -- and in addition to that, you can do it -- you can't do it every night, but you can pick certain amount of times, you can pick where the center blocks are so that you know that -- with all due respect to you, Brother, we do know what's going on in our community. People do talk. They may not formally come and say it, but we do know. And by understanding that whole concept, it will get out. Believe it or not, it will get out to somebody. Roxborough High School had a problem at one point it was reported last year with neighborhoods, groups from Abbotsford, East Falls and some groups from Germantown. Germantown and East Falls was teaming up against the youths from Abbotsford. So they called people in -- I went to Roxborough -- people like myself, Malik Aziz, and what we did was -- they took credit for it, but I don't care. I 83 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 really don't. That's why I'm here. My suggestions, however it works, I don't need credit, because -- I don't want to get too religious, but my reward is with God, but that's a whole other story. One of the things we went up there and we did when I was called and I was asked to come up there -- and I worked with Mentos, you might know him, Carlos Mentos. Anyway, we went up there, and one of the things we did was -- this was very interesting -- we had like 14 youths there, the core guys. So what I 15 do -- and I think we can do this. We 16 actually had them identify who their 17 leadership was. Because when we used to 18 gang war -- I think you've been out 19 there, Rep. You always had people 20 that -- 21 REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: 22 (Unintelligible.) 23
You had people 24 who were guys who were the leaders. 25 People knew that and they had respect. 84 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 So you identified them. And when they said something, believe me, you listened. Ain't nobody going to give them too much mouth. So what we did was, I used that concept and I identified -- because everybody thought that it was interesting what happened. By doing that, I told them, Ya'll guys pick who you think were your spokesperson, and everybody thought that they was it until this started happening. And some interesting things came out. It broke up that whole thing. It actually served to -- but the leaders, wasn't nobody going to question them, because they know that these guys could actually handle themselves. But what happened from that is, those leaders, because they had the respect, we identified who they were and we went to them and we made -- we had to utilize what they've built up and make them feel like they were what they were, but they only felt that way because 85 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 that's what their people out of their own peers said. Then once we got them to start working with them, it all stopped. And I think you can do that in the community, identify -- because there are people on the streets that people identify with. Let me use the term, if I can, with all due respect. They got the (unintelligible) check. REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: Credibility.
Credibility, exactly. And I think within that, we can identify those, take the programs to them, make them feel -- because they obviously have some influence. You just want to redirect that influence and show them how they utilize their influence in a positive way. And one of the things that I see -- and I'll get off the mike -- that I see that I think is real critical is -- I was an at-risk youth, and I'm glad people didn't give up on me. I'm here to say -- because a lot of times 86 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 I see people who look for the youths that are doing good, and that's fine. They should be rewarded. But we're only as strong as our weakest link. So we got to find -- we got to go to those at-risk youths. We got to make them believe that they are somebody. Because to me, I'm not God, I can't say who can be saved and who can't. Now, don't get me wrong. If I put my efforts out there and you don't want to do it, then that's good because it allows me to isolate you and put you over there, but what I found out in using this concept, I have ran into some people who thought that nobody cared about them, because they were perceived to be the badder of the bad. But I can't give up on them, because people didn't give up on me, and I think I'm doing a pretty good job, doing my best. I'm in the correctional system and I deliberately went into the system for -- because I was in healthcare, a 87 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 whole different career, and I went in there to begin to start trying to find ways to help, because out of 43,000 prisoners in the state, 37,000 of them are black, and that's a fact. Most of them. We fund -- Thank you, Councilwoman. Philly funds these communities around the state. So I just want to say that I'm willing to get involved and, like I said, take it to their homes. I don't want -- everything that's happening is positive and is needed, you know, because everything works together for the good of the Lord, or however that saying goes. I really believe that. But thank you for having these forums. REPRESENTATIVE WATERS: Well said. Thank you.
Will you give her your name and phone number. Okay. Well, I think that our time is up. We have to be out of here at 88 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 o'clock. I want to thank everyone for coming. There are a lot of great ideas. (Applause.)
Some good 6 ideas and good comments. Your issue 7 about the schools and the effort to train 8 the teachers to deal with issues is a 9 very important one and something we will address on the Council level when we have the School Board with us. Okay? But the other ideas, sir, talk to Alicia. And anyone else who has an idea or a comment, there's the hotline, and certainly leave your name and number and someone will get back to you. I want to thank the panelists, young lady from CHOICE for coming out and traveling with us. She's been on the road, too, right?
And thank our State Representative Waters for coming out. 89 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 And the State Representatives, when we go into the various communities, have been supportive and have come out to be supportive. We were in South Philadelphia. The Representatives came out there. It depends on their schedule. Some of them get tied up in Harrisburg, but they're here. We want to thank Dwight Evans for his leadership. (Applause.)
And thank him for working, putting all of this together. It's not easy. It takes a lot of time. It takes a lot of money, but luckily he's got the money. And so I think if there are no 19 comments -- Dwight, do you have any comments? REPRESENTATIVE EVANS: No. 22
We will recess this meeting to December the 6th, 7:00 p.m., William Penn High School at Broad and Master Street. So even though 90 10/25/06 - PUBLIC SAFETY - RES. 051155 you live out here in Southwest Philly, we live up in Mount Airy, come to North Philadelphia, because it's a good way to get to know the neighborhoods. I thought I knew Philadelphia. I didn't know too much about this place, but this is good. So thank you all for coming. If you have any questions, please feel free to call any of us. You can access us on the computer by calling philly.gov, first name, last name. That's all you need and you can get our offices. Call City Hall, ask for the Councilperson and they'll give you the number. Thank you all. And we look forward to having that information, Alicia. Thank you. Good night. Let me just thank Bartram for letting us come in. We appreciate it. (Joint Committee on Public Safety and Public Health and Human Services adjourned at 8:55 p.m.) - - - 91 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the proceedings, evidence and objections are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me upon the foregoing matter on October 25, 2006, and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. ______________________________ MICHELE L. MURPHY RPR-Notary Public (The foregoing certification of this transcript does not apply to any reproduction of the same by any means, unless under the direct control and/or supervision of the certifying reporter.)