DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — There's a new approach to tackling violent crime in Decatur. The city has partnered with Old Kings Orchard (OKO) Community Center to launch OKO Peace.
"For too long we've been going into neighborhoods telling people what we can do for them, and we're not addressing the right things," Devon Joyner, Executive Director for the OKO Community Center (OKOCC), told WAND News.
Joyner said OKO Peace is a new approach to fighting crime. He said specially trained Interrupters will target key players, and teens that might be headed down the wrong path.
"We have to talk to the people that are living these issues and problems on a daily basis," Joyner explained.
He said most youth programming in the city is focused on fun activities to keep kids off the streets. But OKO Peace will focus on what happens when they go back home.
"This is not a knock at the environment itself, it's a lack of the resources the environment needs to change behavior. What is triggering the anger? the incidents?" Joyner asked.
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OKOCC will hire Influencers to work with adults and teens to get them help before they get violent.
"Having a program that involves individuals that may have participated in, or at least be familiar with, some of these types of significant gun violence, is going to be important in reaching the group of people that we're trying to reduce the amount of crime to," Councilman David Horn said during city council Monday night.
Old King's Orchard Community Center
OKO Peace hopes to have a measurable impact on crime in the first few months up and running.
"I would like to see that data, what's being done because if we're not getting any results, we might not get this grant again," Councilman Pat McDaniel said.
Joyner hopes to build trust through candid conversations and real action for those most in need.
"This is going to be a community effort and it's really going to be driven by the community," Joyner said.
The program is being funded by a Community Development and Violence Prevention Grant, secured by Senator Doris Turner in the last Illinois Legislative Session.
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