Community based program to help stop violence before it happens

BATON ROUGE, La (BRPROUD) – Baton Rouge leaders are taking another step to help fight violent crime.

“What if we could stop violence before it happens?” asked East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome.

Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome posed a question right out of a movie, but the idea isn’t exclusive to Hollywood. The Mayor’s office is rolling out an anti-violence program in neighborhoods and schools. It’s called the Safe, Hopeful, Healthy Initiative.

“This is about being community based. This is before law enforcement is there,” said Courtney Scott, the Mayor’s Asst. Chief Adminstrative Officer.

Scott said they plan to go before the Metro Council to accept $2 million dollars in CARES Act funding for the progam. Once approved by the council, they plan to go back to them with how that money will be used to fully start the program in January. Several community groups including C.H.A.N.G.E. are also a part of the program.

Elizabeth Robinson of C.H.A.N.G.E. said, “We’re just here. If you’re beefin, we want to help. If you need a job, we’ll help. If we don’t have the answer, we’re gonna go find the answer.”

Blighted properties are also a part of the program, giving people pride in their neighborhood and also helping them feel safer.

Safety is part of the program’s goal, while helping to prevent crime scenes from becoming reality.

“Without law enforcement intelligence, we have everyday citizens that know and these citizens have stepped up as community members to say we can do this on our own without law enforcement,” said Scott.

You can get involved by sending an email to safehopefulhealthybr@brla.gov.

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