Dallas has been seeing a push by local community leaders to decrease the violence occurring in the city, violence that disproportionately affects communities of color.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, organizations like Urban Specialists and Dallas Justice Now have been raising awareness around the issue and, in the case of the former, trying to “recruit, train, and deploy changemakers from various backgrounds, and across a variety of pathways to be forces for good in their communities.”
Another group has also been on the scene — No More Violence.
“Something needs to change, there is no reason why any parent should have to bury a child. Our community needs to come together and help each other instead of hurting each other,” said Lisa Rae Abbe, community liaison for No More Violence, WFAA reported.
The organization had been fundraising to attend the No More Violence Youth Convention in Wharton, which was held over the weekend. It typically “provides long-term support to families” who suffered a loss due to violence.
“It takes a village and many voices to get positive results,” Abbe said.
Abbe and others associated with the group recently lent their support to the grieving mother of a 7-year-old African-American boy named Kyrie Barnes. Barnes was shot in his bed by celebratory gunfire over Fourth of July weekend. He died a few days later.
“NO PARENT SHOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS!! I AM HEARTBROKEN YALL PLEASE STOP SHOOTING IN THE AIR!! HE WAS A INNOCENT CHILD MINDING HIS OWN BUSINESS!!” wrote Abbe in a Facebook post.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the overwhelming majority of murder victims in Dallas during the first four months of 2023 were people of color. More up-to-date statistics are not readily available due to a purported ransomware attack in May that allegedly disrupted the City’s ability to maintain accurate public-facing crime data.
As of May 1, murders were up roughly 23% year over year overall, and crime has been prevalent within Downtown Dallas. The neighborhood routinely logs significantly more incidents than Fort Worth’s downtown area, which has a specialized police unit and private security guards protecting residents and visitors.
The Dallas Police Department is currently short around 900 of the 4,000 police officers recommended by a City analysis that contends optimal staffing levels require about three officers for every 1,000 residents.