Clergy Members Gain Trust; Crime Rates Drop

By Megan Donovan



ROXBURY-- Reverend Bruce Wall of Global Ministries Christian Church uses his two cable TV shows and numerous radio shows to raise money to fight crime. Rufus Faulk, the gang mediation coordinator for the Christian based TenPoint Coalition, employs workers within the community to meet with youth to prevent gang activity.

From 2006 to 2009, violent crime rates in the Roxbury and Dorchester areas has decreased by 22%. Some have attributed the decrease to influence from the clergy who have used their presence to create programs that focus on educating the youth about the destructiveness of gang violence.

“The black churches have great credibility and visibility within the community,” said David Trueblood, spokesman for the Boston Foundation, which sponsors programs to reduce youth violence. “They make good partners because they have a history within the community.”

The Boston Foundation is a main donor to StreetSafe, a program that deploys street workers into the community to create relationships with at-risk youth aged 16-24. StreetSafe has offices within different community centers throughout the South End, Roxbury and Dorchester. It partners with non-religious based organizations, such as the Yawkey Club of Roxbury, as well as the Black Ministerial Alliance and TenPoint Coalition for street worker hiring and training. Street Safe attributes some of its success to clergy members that run these contributing foundations.

The decrease in violent crimes, which include homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault, combined with an unstable economy, has meant cuts to grants that support these youth programs.

“We’ve seen a lull in street violence and a decrease in resources,” Faulk said. “People become complacent.”

While the TenPoint Coalition has seen cuts to grants, such as the Shannon grant, it receive from other foundations, Global Ministries has taken a self-reliant approach to finance its Stop the Violence campaign. It raises money through advertising on cable and radio shows.

“I don’t want to compete for money with other members of the clergy,” Wall said. “It becomes counterproductive to crime reduction.”

Still, some question whether the anti-gang message is compromised by the religious message. The Boston Police Department has formed partnerships with several organizations, including the Youth Service Providers Network, as a way to prevent crime without mixing with the church.

The Youth Service Providers Network office is also located in the Yawkey Club of Roxbury and its partnership brought in new members. Liz Skinner, a Northeastern student and volunteer coordinator at the club, said the network recommended the 7-year-old brother of a gang member join.

“He was allowed to skip the waitlist in this case,” Skinner said.

Others say too much police involvement with youth programs deters resolutions and prevents trust from building between street workers and gang members.

“You have to learn how to do things without the police because they aren’t going to be around 24/7,” Wall said. “They usually aren’t preventative. They show up after the fact.”

For some, trust is what makes the church more effective than police in crime reduction.

“I’d trust a member of the church community over a police officer because they’re more focused on ridding the streets of violence rather than what their next paycheck is going to look like,” said Kyle Rosa, 19, a native Roxbury resident.