ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Some of the top advocates for gun-violence prevention in the region and beyond convened Tuesday in downtown Allentown.
More than 100 people, most clad in orange, turned up at the Renaissance Hotel in Center Square for the Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley’s inaugural “State of PNLV” address.
Executive Director Hassan Batts, who got a standing ovation as he made his way to the microphone, emphasized the power of individuals and community throughout his speech.
Promise Neighborhoods is “not only the leading gun-violence-prevention organization in the city, we’re the leading (organization) in the state."Hassan Batts, executive director of Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley
He told the crowd that PNLV — known for its orange “END GUN VIOLENCE” T-shirts — has sparked a drastic drop in violence among young people.
“By bringing the community to the table, by listening to the community, by letting the community lead, we have been able to reduce youth violence — murders — by 75 percent,” Batts said.
Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley started in 2007 as an arm of the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
The organization had a mere two employees and a $200,000 budget when it established its independence about a decade ago, Batts said.
PNLV leaders “leveraged” that funding to grow the organization to more than 30 employees, while its budget is now $3 million, Batts said Tuesday.
Promise Neighborhoods is “not only the leading gun-violence-prevention organization in the city, we’re the leading (organization) in the state,” Batts said, adding similar agencies are “bringing us in to teach them how to do this work.”
'The community has the power'
The State of PNLV address also featured two interviews with Batts and advocates for community-led change.
Karla Walker, who runs Community Solutions for Health Equity in Boston, urged those at the State of PNLV address to realize their power and potential to effect change.
“We have the solutions to our own issues,” she said. “(But) we never have the opportunity to do the work because of … engagement suppression.”
Batts earlier used that term to describe several community events for which funding was pulled despite their expected popularity.
“If you're going to fund us, trust us. Trust that we know what we’re doing. Don't make us jump through hoops for your money.”Karla Walker, executive director of Community Solutions for Health Equity
CSHE’s mission is “to uplift the voices, stories and priorities of communities that typically don't have the opportunity to to receive funding for the work that they do,” Walker said.
She urged philanthropy groups and other potential funders of grassroots work to “trust” community leaders.
“If you're going to fund us, trust us. Trust that we know what we’re doing,” she said. “Don't make us jump through hoops for your money.”
Organizers and advocates are “not jumping in and out of” the issues they are fighting to address, they live them every day, Walker said, calling for funders to make similar commitments to causes they financially support.
“The community has the solutions. The community has the power,” Batts said.
