Violence is a problem almost every community has to deal with in the United States, a country where homicide is the third leading cause of death for youth. But, this issue is not always easy to fix, as each community must develop its own approach to things- exactly what the The National Forum on Youth prevention is here to help cities do.
The Forum began its first session in October of 2010 under the direction of President Barack Obama and since then the community participates (which include Boston, Camden, Chicago, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Salinas, San Jose, Long Beach, Cleveland, Louisville, Seattle, and Baltimore) have each made comprehensive plans to prevent and reduce violence. The goal of each event is to establish multi-disciplinary partnerships, develop balanced approaches for prevention/intervention, and create data-driven strategies to provide a picture as to what the cities need to aim for. In the short term, the objective is to gain more active partnerships, improve the focus of resources, and achieve a better use of data.
In one city, Boston, activities that will be undertaken because of the program include creating new risk assessment programs, assembling a monthly Community Advisory Board featuring residents of the community, expanding mental health resources, and continuing to expand the current mayor’s programs.
This year marked the Fifth National Summit on Preventing Youth Violence, which took place from June 27-29 in Baltimore, Maryland. It brought together professionals and youth from all over the United States for the one purpose of preventing youth violence for good, something we all hope will occur in the near future.
References:
About the National Forum. (n.d.). Retrieved July 14, 2016, from http://youth.gov/youth-topics/preventing-youth-violence/about-national-forum
The NSV Blog 