Community activists in Sacramento's Del Paso Heights neighborhood are urging city leaders to put more funding into violence-intervention programs in the wake of Friday's shooting death of a Grant High School student.
"In Del Paso Heights there are more shootings. And not necessarily gangs, it's just gun violence - husbands killing wives and vice a versa. We've got to do something," says Sistah Pat Roundtree Rivers, co-pastor of For His Glory Church.
Rivers wants city leaders to revive an anti-gang program called Ceasefire.
"That's the only tool I believe that's been proven effective that can reduce the gun violence in our area," says Rivers.
The Ceasefire program began in Sacramento five years ago offering gang members job-training and other resources. But Rivers says the program has suffered because of budget cuts.
Meanwhile, Rivers says she and other pastors will be holding a healing circle tonight for neighborhood youth coping with the shooting death of 17-year-old Grant High student Jaulon Clavo, or JJ.
"Just talking to the kids and praying with them," says Rivers. "Allowing them to talk, express their feelings. And maybe how can we help them get through this."
The healing circle will be held at Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Grand Avenue.
"And then we're going to go outside and walk up Grand Avenue together, silently," says Rivers. "It's a peace march. And so it's just making a statement to the community and the devil that we're together in this and we're tired of it. Time for a change in our community."
The healing circle and a community march will be held at 6:30 tonight at Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Grand Avenue.
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