Rev. Jeffrey Brown is one of the architects of a strategy that helped to reduce violent crime involving youth in Boston by 79% in the 1990s.
Brown did it by bringing together faith leaders, community members and law enforcement to do something that was unthinkable at the time: speak directly to the people who were perpetrating the violence. The result is known as "The Boston Miracle".
Imran Garda meets with Jeffrey Brown at the historic Twelfth Baptist Church in the predominantly African-American neighborhood of Roxbury in Boston. Roxbury is one of several communities in Boston that were once gripped by violent crime. Today it is thriving.
On this episode of The InnerView, Brown talks about why government strategies to reduce violence keep missing the mark, how faith can transform an entire community, and why listening—truly listening—can heal a community in ways no policy ever could.
00:00 Meet Jeffrey Brown
01:17 The Roxbury community and its challenges
03:24 Addressing youth violence
04:31 Why policing alone won’t solve street violence
06:14 Systemic racism and its impact
08:05 Strategies for reducing crime in Boston
09:38 “We need change for everybody”
11:09 Faith and religion in combating street violence
15:24 The interchangeable roles of victim and victimizer
17:24 On police killings of Black Americans
20:28 Challenging the views of Sowell, Elder, and Clarke
24:54 The Boston Miracle
Subscribe:
Livestream: http://trt.world/ytlive
Facebook: http://trt.world/facebook
Twitter: http://trt.world/twitter
Instagram: http://trt.world/instagram
Visit our website: http://trt.world
