UNITY Updates

4/27: Congressional Briefing on Preventing Violence
Sponsored by UNITY and the Congressional Asian Pacific American, Black and Hispanic Caucuses, this briefing will highlight public health’s contributions toward addressing violence, share success stories from Minneapolis and Baltimore, and emphasize the value of partnerships, especially between the public health and criminal justice sectors. Join UNITY Co-Chair Deborah Prothrow-Stith and other experts on the Hill for the Congressional briefing Prevention Works: A Public Health Approach to Preventing Violence Affecting Youth. Contact Edward-Michael Muña at edward@preventioninstitute.org or 510-444-8027, ext. 306, to RSVP, and forward this invitation to colleagues and friends.

Prevention Works Congressional Briefing
Friday, April 27, 2012, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. ET
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2168,
at Independence Avenue and South Capitol Street
Washington, D.C.

For real-time updates, find us on Twitter: We’ll be live-tweeting the whole event from @UNITYinitiative and @preventioninst, using the #UNITYbriefing hashtag.  Tweet with us, and let us know how your community is preventing violence before it occurs.

Other UNITY Trainings & Events:

• 5/22, Los Angeles: Beyond Turf Wars: L.A. Gang Violence Prevention & Intervention Conference. UNITY Co-Chairs Deborah Prothrow-Stith and Billie Weiss will deliver the keynote and closing plenary. UNITY Project Director Rachel Davis will also moderate a panel featuring L.A. County Health Officer Jonathan Fielding, Robert Ross of The California Endowment, Gary Slutkin of Chicago CeaseFire, and Tchaka Shepherd, a critical care surgeon.
• Missed the 3/22 UNITY Data & Evaluation Webinar? Download the webinar slides or listen to the recording about Los Angeles’ Community Safety Scorecard, an innovative place-based evaluation model.
     

UNITY and The King Institute Launch Joint Initiative
Martin Luther King III and civil rights icon Andrew Young spoke at the launch event for Community Peace & Thriving Youth, UNITY’s joint initiative with The Martin Luther King III Institute for Social Justice and Human Rights.  “We are not talking about a quick fix. We are talking about a life-long struggle. We have changed the world; look at Dr. King’s legacy,” Young said. And there is still more to do.

The next stage of this initiative is Urban Summer: Saving Lives, Building Dreams. Young people are particularly vulnerable during summer months, and this effort supports cities in providing young people with opportunities related to job readiness, the arts and physical activity. Stay tuned for more details, and watch this local TV news story to hear inspiring voices from the event.
 

"Prevention on Par with Punishment," says UNITY Co-Chair

UNITY Co-Chair Deborah Prothrow-Stith calls on criminal justice to partner with public health, and prevent violence before it occurs. “As a nation, we already promise to respond to violence with expensive and sometimes harsh solutions,” she wrote. “We need a companion promise, the promise of prevention.” Deborah calls for a different approach to public safety on pages 28 and 29 of “To Build a Better Criminal Justice System: 25 Experts Envision the Next 25 Years of Reform.”

   

UNITY Staff Update

Prevention Institute welcomes Ilana Blum, who supports UNITY and other projects that prevent violence. Ilana has coordinated multi-sector initiatives to address adverse childhood experiences, and she brings valuable skills to the UNITY team. Read her full bio.

    

A Prevention Institute initiative, UNITY is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and in part by The Kresge Foundation. For more information, visit www.preventioninstitute.org/unity