Some of the best memories from my childhood come from spending weekends with friends in my neighborhood at block parties. We took over the streets with bikes and scooters. Parents parked their beach chairs in the front yard with the biggest cooler. Dads huddled together to talk about fishing or reliving the summer of ‘69 and moms congregated to discuss anything and everything. The front door was always open.
The only thing us kids were afraid of while being out on the streets at night was if the parents or neighbors caught us doing something we weren’t supposed to be doing. We never had to worry about shootings. We just got to be kids.
It’s a stark, contrasting reality for children in areas like Overtown, Liberty City and Little Haiti where they have to be inside the house with doors locked before sundown. Each year, an average of 30 kids under the age 18 are killed by gunshots either in crossfire, domestic disputes, or accidents while playing with a firearm. With gunshots remaining a steady cause of death in children since 2006 in these areas of the city, the community becomes more outraged every year. Including us.
There was a shooting in a park not more than 6 blocks away from our studio, which happens to be less than 6 blocks from Belle Meade – a neighborhood full of children including Thom and Lisa’s. This was the final spark that fired up Crime Stoppers Kids, a campaign created to encourage witnesses of shootings involving children to step forward and say something. It was a reward fund for people who’d tip off MDPD (Miami-Dade Police Department) with important information about these crimes. We needed our neighbors and communities to step up to the plate and start recognizing this issue as everybody’s problem.
We’d also started working with a stellar non-profit organization called Gang Alternative – a team of amazing people dedicated to getting teens out of gangs and preventing kids from joining them. Stationed in Little Haiti and other nearby communities riddled with gang violence, their job is to love these kids and provide them a safe haven where they can do their homework, play with their friends, and talk to adults when they have a problem. You know, normal kid stuff.
With Spring Break right around the corner, we wanted to make sure the community was aware that Gang Alternative’s doors would be open. We also wanted to make sure that all parents who’d have to continue working while their kids are out of school, would be prepared to talk about safety with their children. On average, the number of shootings double when kids are not in school either on weekends and/or national holidays. That’s why it was so important for us to reach out to the community before the break started. We decided to throw a block party.
It took months of planning; scouting out the streets, finding performers and entertainers, finding vendors from our local business community, finding donations for food, asking people to volunteer, getting Miami-Dade Police Department to participate and the list goes on. It was incredible to see it all come together.
Neighborhood Walk through. We saw an empty lot with a wall that had graffiti from a local gang. It was during the walkthrough that we decided we’d get volunteers and kids from the neighborhood to paint a mural with beautiful colors and messages of love from the community.
Site plan for Gang Alternative Block Party. A Google Earth image of the neighborhood we selected for our event. Right in the heart of Little Haiti, purposely blocks away from the Gang Alternative headquarters.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]We were only a week away from the Block Party when news broke that two police officers were shot at in our Little Haiti neighborhood. We needed more protection for the block party. We called everyone we could think of, but there was no guarantee we’d get more than two volunteer MDPD officers to cover an event with potentially over 100 people. We had to move forward with or without the resources. As we say, the show must go on.
The day was finally here. We’d called every broadcast news station to cover the event. It was going to be a great story with an important message. Among the many stresses that come with planning an event like this; if there will be enough guests, if the news stations will show up, if people will have fun; However, my biggest concern was that things would turn for the worst and that there could be a shooting at the block party. Little Haiti is in the top three of the Miami cities’ for most shootings, and it was on the first night of Spring Break. It wasn’t an irrational fear.
It wasn’t an irrational fear.
It was finally 7pm
It was finally 7pm and all of my concerns dissipated. It was humbling to see the volunteers and neighbors come together to celebrate peace. This is how it’s supposed to be on the Friday evening before Spring Break.
Watch the video for the full Gang Alternative Block Party experience!