Barbara Lee Announces Funding for Public Safety, Violence Prevention Projects
(Washington, DC) – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland), who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, announced today that the Fiscal Year 2008 Commerce, Justice, State Appropriations Bill that will be voted on next week will include over $1 million for projects in her district aimed at preventing violence and improving public safety.
“From improving communications for emergency services to providing young people with alternatives to violence and crime and making sure that formally incarcerated people are prepared to find and keep work, these projects help make our community safer,” said Lee.
A list of projects included in the bill that was approved by the Appropriations Committee today follows:
1) $200,000 - Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom Center in Oakland, CA - for youth violence prevention programs. The program seeks to develop skills in conflict resolution, gang prevention, and alternatives to violence.
2) $100,000 for the Radical Roving Recreation Program (RRR) in Oakland, CA - RRR is a violence prevention program designed to change the attitudes of misguided and misdirected children and youth in the City of Oakland by meeting the youth where they are mentally, spiritually, emotionally and physically. RRR provides an array of recreational and educational experiences in different forms, at a variety of locations and to an unmet targeted population. RRR activities address the whole person by eliminating transportation barriers, assisting in addressing housing issues, and preparing youth with life skills that translate into successful educational experiences and employment opportunities.
3) $100,000 - Allen Temple Housing and Economic Development Corporation, Oakland, CA - for the Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Sr. Training Academy. DJASSTA provides training designed to help formerly incarcerated individuals obtain and retain employment that offers opportunities for living wages and advancement. The program offers comprehensive services with a focus on job-training, including office training in office technology and a construction pre-apprenticeship program, and employment placement and follow up support.
4) $100,000 - Berkeley Public Safety Agencies, Berkeley, CA. Berkeley’s current Public Safety computer dispatch and communications system must be updated to ensure systems interoperability. The existing system is minimally functional and cannot support critical inter-jurisdictional communications and coordination needs. The project will enhance Berkeley’s ability to maintain a secure and interoperable computer and communication system and maximize sustainable use after a natural or human-made disaster.
5) $100,000 - Center for Public Safety at Merritt College and Peralta College, Oakland, CA - the Center will house the Oakland Police Academy and fire training courses. Other new courses would be developed particularly around Homeland Security, paramedic, paralegal, Crime Scene Investigations and the like. The vision is that Oakland and East Bay public safety organizations would have an academic environment that would offer a wide range of courses tailored to them and be geographically close.
6) $100,000 - Alameda County Violence Prevention Initiative, Oakland, CA - The Alameda County Violence Prevention Initiative is a countywide effort to reduce all forms of violence affecting the safety, economy, and quality of life of residents and communities throughout Alameda County.
7) $50,000 - Youth Uprising, Oakland, CA - for youth alternative to violence and crime program. The Alternative to Violence and Crime (ATVAC) project is an intensive re-education and skill training project for youth and young adults: (a) at risk of gang involvement, (b) expelled from school for violence, (c) on probation or parole, (d) truant from school, (e) those recently treated for intentional injuries as a result of violence, and/or (f) those with recent exposures to violent crime especially homicide and other traumatic events that degrade the integrity of community and familial social supports. ATVAC services are designed to interrupt the cycle of crime and violence by promoting pathways to non-violent life styles. ATVAC uses peer-to-peer, positive adult mentorship, and clinical supports to encourage educational attainment, access to therapeutic services, maintaining responsible employment, and meeting family responsibilities.
8) $300,000 - Indian Legal Services in Oakland, CA - for the development of a state-wide tribal court.
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