Anti-violence group to door knock entire North Side 'to stop the violence'

A Minneapolis group outlined plans on Friday to door knock every house and apartment on the north side as part of a neighborhood anti-violence campaign in the wake of 5-year-old Nizzel George's death.

The group will encourage participants in a vigil that is scheduled Saturday to join the North Side campaign, said Roberta Englund, executive director of the Folwell Neighhborhood Assocation.

The vigil, called by Mad Dads, will be held at 3 p.m. at 4500 Bryant Ave. N., the block where the boy was shot and killed as he slept on a sofa, when bullets were fired at the house.

"We are encouraging people to form block clubs and build communication with each other, and encourage people to hold a National Night Out event in support of non-violence in Minneapolis," said Englund. National Night Out is scheduled August 7.

Englund is associated with a group called the 4th Precinct CARE Task Force, which will distribute a statement on Saturday under the slogan. "Enough is enough! No one dies!"

"We will be united in our common interests and our vigilance to stop the violence now!" the task force statement says. "We will make North Minneapolis a safe place for everyone to live, work and play by coming together in one community with one message and with one voice."

Englund said the group is looking to form a partnership with the city of Minneapolis and other agencies and community organizations "to close the gaps" to prevent further killings. She said the group is asking for increased police patrols. "It is not a criticism of the precinct," she said. "They are stretched too thin."

4th Precinct CARE Task Force A crime prevention strategy of the Folwell Center for Urban Initiatives to benefit North Minneapolis

Folwell Center for Urban Initiatives 1206 37th Avenue North Minneapolis, MN 55412 Phone 612.521.2100 Fax 612.521.4538 info@folwell.org 4thprecinctcare.org

Enough is enough! No one dies!

North Minneapolis stands at a crossroads with one path leading to where children continue to die while the other to a place where families and children do not fear for their lives. The first road is a dead end, the second a path to a better future. Our community was shattered on June 26

th by another senseless tragedy; a young child was killed in his sleep on his Grandmother's couch. We hold vigil after vigil for fallen children, gunned down for no other reason than being in the "wrong place at the wrong time". Residents hide in their houses for fear of the violence in the streets…but sometimes even the houses are not safe. We are frustrated. We are angry. We are sick and tired of being sick and tired. We have had enough. Make no mistake – we are all responsible for changing our present and future! We all must understand the futility of long term gang investigation without real time – on the street intervention and prevention activity. It is time for the Youth Violence Prevention Task Force to fulfill its purpose and become a true model for violence prevention. It is time for North Minneapolis neighborhood organizations to truly understand the value of collaboration and communication and work together across geographic boundaries. It is time for elected officials and municipal agencies to take the actions necessary to intervene in the process of escalating violence before we have another victim. It is time for families caught in a web of violence to break free so that no more sons, daughters, grandsons and granddaughters die. We must all say enough is enough.

We know there is value to diversion and supervision of our youth – but the parents, caretakers and the adults of our community must take the lead and set the example. We must put down the weapons that kill and destroy and take up the tools that build and create our community with a solid foundation of caring and commitment that provides safe shelter and it begins with the resolution we have put forth today...

Enough is enough! No one dies!

These are the words that must now ring with clarity and strength through the streets of North Minneapolis, from corner store to community center, from playground to police station, from fast food restaurant to faith institution, from bike path to barber shop and from neighbor to neighbor… this is the message that every grandparent must impart, every educator must teach, every parent must share and every child must know.,

Enough is enough! No one dies!

We can no longer allow ourselves to be consumed by our fears, anger, apathy or differences. We will be united in our common interests and our vigilance to stop the violence now! We will make North Minneapolis a safe place for everyone to live, work and play by coming together as one community with one message and with one voice:

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To get involved, contact the Folwell Center for Urban Initiatives or visit us on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/enoughisenoughnoonedies/

Action Statement