Boston leaders gather at violence reduction workshop
BOSTON - Boston's mayor, police commissioner, the Suffolk County District Attorney, and other community leaders gathered at a violence reduction workshop on Tuesday.
Mayor Michelle Wu said the intent of the workshop was to explore ways to end violence in Boston, even as the city experiences lower overall crime compared to the five-year average.
"We also know that Boston is one of the safest large cities in the country but I'm here to emphasize that historic lows are not good enough," Wu said.
While overall crime is down, homicides are up in Boston. There have been 11 homicides in the city in 2023. That is six more homicides than last year and 9 more than the five year average, according to Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox.
Cox said the city cannot rely on police alone to curb violence.
"One of the things we know is that police aren't the answer. We can't do it that way," Cox said.
Associate Pastor Jeffrey Brown of the Twelfth Baptist Church said crime may be lower on paper but it does not always feel that way.
"We're in the vanguard in terms of violence prevention in the country but if people still measure violence from their front porches or their back stoops then we still have a lot of work to do," Brown said.
That was clear in a conversation with Patricia, a Roxbury resident who lost her son to gun violence two years ago.
"Bullets don't have a name on it and innocent people keep getting hurt because of these young dumb people doing dumb things," said Patricia.
A grandmother of 22, she argues that schools need more security including metal detectors and police officers.
John Brown, a longtime Roxbury resident, told WBZ the key to curbing violence is getting community leaders to engage with young people.
"You need grassroots and to find out, street by street, who are the adult leaders on these streets and those are the people who have influence with the 15, 16, 17-year-olds, because they're the ones getting in all the trouble really," Brown said. "What's happening on these streets is these kids' lives are changing so rapidly and they don't have any direction."