CeaseFire Program Description

Overview

CeaseFire is the first initiative of the Chicago Project for Violence Prevention. It works with community-based organizations to develop and implement strategies to reduce and prevent violence, particularly shootings and killings. CeaseFire relies on outreach workers, faith leaders, and other community leaders to intervene in conflicts, or potential conflicts, and promote alternatives to violence. CeaseFire also involves cooperation with police and it depends heavily on a strong public education campaign to instill in people the message that shootings and violence are not acceptable. Finally, it calls for the strengthening of communities so they have the capacity to exercise informal social control and respond to issues that affect them.

 

Conflict Mediation

Youth outreach and high-risk conflict mediation are, together, perhaps the most vital of the five core components of CeaseFire. Outreach workers and violence interrupters are streetwise individuals who are familiar with gang life in the communities where CeaseFire is active. Many of them are former gang members and many have spent time in prison, but they are now “on this side of the line” and eager to give back and help young people in their neighborhoods. These individuals use their experience and knowledge of the streets to seek out and build relationships with troubled youths who are susceptible to the violent norms that still exist on the streets.

Outreach workers have a client base and focus on changing the behaviors and thinking of high-risk youth. They keep in touch with the community and seek to intervene in conflicts before they escalate to violence and also prevent retaliation. They attempt to steer individuals away from violence to more positive endeavors, such as education and employment opportunities.

Violence interrupters are a component of CeaseFire that began in March 2004. They focus on high-level gang leaders to call for truces and to stop retaliations or more shootings from occurring. Although well connected to persons who are still in the gang culture, these men and women have demonstrated their commitment to a new lifestyle and to being critical influences in the lives of others.