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“We Are Not Lost Causes”

Mark Obbie

March 05, 2020 |

Longreads |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Rochester, New York

In Rochester, NY, the Center for Teen Empowerment, a nonprofit that trains youth in community organizing, personal development, and anti-violence, is working to bring kids off the street and into safety. The program, which started in Boston, is centered on four ideas: jobs (paying the youth hired as organizers), teamwork, agency (letting them build their own activist agendas), and peer influence. While hard to evaluate because of its situational, qualitative nature, city officials, including law enforcement, point to the program as a factor in the decrease in violence across the city.

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This Man Says His Anti-violence Plan Would Save 12,000 Lives

Mark Obbie

September 11, 2019 |

The Atlantic |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Buffalo, New York

With support for a New York-based grant program, Buffalo has been trying various evidence-based approaches to decrease violence, especially gun violence, in the city. The grant program, Gun Involved Violence Elimination, or GIVE, provides funding for police departments to adopt strategies like hot-spot policing, deterring those most at-risk, or street outreach to break the cycle of violence. While such strategies are linked to success, the process of implementing them, gaining support and trust from the community, and waiting for long-term change has proven challenging.

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The Wonk's Guide to What Works, and What Doesn't, When Policing Violent Crime

Mark Obbie

August 11, 2016 |

The Trace |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States

While policing initiatives have previously been driven by intuitive responses to trends in violent crime, the Centre for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University has developed a new strategy for identifying the effectiveness of policing practices. With a focus on empirical evidence-based approaches to crime prevention, the Centre has identified large-scale initiatives that work.

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In Search of the Felon-Friendly Workplace

Mark Obbie

June 25, 2016 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

One of the hardest parts of being in prison is not knowing what to do when you get out. By pitching ex-cons as good for business, the Eastern District of Missouri’s prison-to-work program has become a model for inmate re-entry nationwide.

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Can a new victims advocacy movement break cycles of violence?

Mark Obbie

January 13, 2016 |

Al Jazeera |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

A growing number of organizations—rallying around victim advocacy—are calling for shorter sentences for offenders and better counseling for victims across the United States.

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The Unlikely Rise of Restorative Justice in a Conservative Upstate New York County

Mark Obbie

December 29, 2015 |

Slate |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Batavia, New York

In a conservative upstate town in New York, an early advocate of what is now known as restorative justice pioneered the idea of finding alternatives to incarceration that address root causes of crimes and offer victims larger roles in the process. He did this by engaging different people across law enforcement, the community and social services. That built broad support, but the programs have struggled to maintain these innovations or make them permanent after the departure of the visionary founder.

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A New Way of Fighting Crime—and Helping Victims—on the Violent Streets of Los Angeles

Mark Obbie

September 11, 2015 |

Slate |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

Four community groups in the Los Angeles area work to address the root causes of what draws young people into gangs with a mix of approaches to help people leave the gang life, including education and job services, counseling, addiction services, and tattoo removal. Some also focus on helping victims since so many gang members start out life as victims themselves and this feeds into a cycle of violence. All of them focus on creating community and belonging, which is why so many young people join gangs in the first place.

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Can Prisons Reduce Recidivism by Inviting Victims of Crime to Talk to Prisoners?

Mark Obbie

July 19, 2015 |

Slate |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Houston, Texas

A Houston man whose sister was murdered created a way to help his own pain and possibly foster more empathy and understanding among inmates. The restorative justice program, Bridges to Life, has grown to hundreds of volunteers throughout Texas, which includes crime victims who tell their stories and work with inmates to impress upon them the harm that their actions can inflict on others. The prisoners are encouraged to open up about their own lives with the idea that both groups will find healing.

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A Mother Forgives the Man Who Raped and Killed Her Daughter

Mark Obbie

June 30, 2015 |

Slate |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Houston, Texas

Restorative justice emphasizes accountability and making amends by facilitating meetings between people who committed a crime and those who were hurt by that crime. Victims can get their questions answered and express to the offender how their lives were impacted and the offender apologizes and presents specific ways they will make amends, such as community service or drug treatment. The method improves recidivism rates and gives victims a small sense of control. One participant, Linda White, was inspired to become a vocal and active advocate of the approach after speaking with a man who killed her daughter.

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Why Victims Face the Criminals Who Hurt Them

Mark Obbie

December 20, 2010 |

Pacific Standard |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Texas

The Victim-Offender Mediation/Dialogue program in Texas connects victims with those who harmed them to initiate a healing process founded on the premise of restorative justice. This state-run mediation program helps victims talk to "the criminal who brought pain to them," and requires that the victim request the meeting. Although it has been slow to gain both notoriety in Texas and popularity across the U.S., positive effects have been documented for those who have accessed and participated in the service.

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