In a blog posting from several months ago, I mentioned the concerns held by Fraternal Order of Police President, Kris Baumann, about the coming surge in DC violence. It appears that the surge is upon us, as children are being murdered nightly on the streets of DC. Each child that loses his or her life is a piece of DC's future that disappears. The surge in violence saddens me, but also makes me more determined to fix our city.
Last night, I attended the Peaceoholics annual awards benefit. Jauhar Abraham, the CEO and co-founder of the Peaceoholics, who is also a close friend, gave an award to one of the greatest success stories of youth turning their lives around. The infamous Choppa City Girls terrorized Anacostia just last year. The girls were sisters and attended Anacostia High School. Businesses, bus drivers and other students lived in constant fear of attacks by the gang.
One day, the girls were introduced to the Peaceoholics. Through the mentorship offered by Jauhar and other co-founder, Ronald Moten, the girls went from causing violence to preventing it. It was the Peaceoholics that made them realize the futility of their behavior. Jauhar took them under his wing and even brought them to North Carolina to visit various universities and worked closely with the schools to ensure that the girls would be accepted. Now, two of the sisters are attending Shaw University in Raleigh and frequently come back to DC to work side by side with the Peaceoholics to fight violence.
Jauhar and Moe are special people. Our city owes them a debt of gratitude for all the good work that they do every day. The Choppa City Girls are just one of countless Peaceoholics success stories. They are a prime example of a community coming together to save our children. Let's salute them!
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