WHAT:  Safe Streets of Sandtown-Winchester Leads Unity March / Call for Peace
On Sat., April 27, 2019, the fourth anniversary of the unrest following Freddie Gray’s death, members of the Sandtown-Winchester Safe Streets will lead a unity march parade with community members and leaders up Pennsylvania Avenue toward Cumberland Street.

“By coming together for this parade, we can we heal as a community, a family and as a city,” said Safe Streets Sandtown-Winchester Site Director Imhotep Fatiu. “This parade signifies our shared commitment to denounce violence, stop shootings and homicides and remember those lives tragically lost.”

WHEN / WHERE:      Sat., April 27- 11 a.m., parade forms at Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. and Pennsylvania Ave.
Noon –  Parade begins, led by marching band and followed by Safe Streets supporters and citizens;
1 p.m. – Parade ends at 600 Cumberland Street;
1 p.m. – 4 p.m. block party at 600 Cumberland St. (between Penn and Carey Streets) featuring food, music, and games.

WHO: Bill McCarthy, Catholic Charities Executive Director
Imhotep Fatiu, Safe Streets of Sandtown-Winchester Site Director
City Council members (invited)
Community members, marching band and children

BACKGROUND: Catholic Charities opened Safe Streets of Sandtown-Winchester after the surge in violence following the death of Freddie Gray in 2015. Since then, the Sandtown-Winchester program has earned the trust and respect of the community and demonstrated an ability to curb confrontations that would have otherwise led to violence. From July 2017 – 2018, the Safe Streets of Sandtown-Winchester team prevented 515 incidents from becoming violent. Prior to mid-October, the community went 320 days without a shooting death. In mid-May, Catholic Charities will open its second site in the Brooklyn-Curtis Bay neighborhood.

Community engagement is a hallmark of Safe Streets of Sandtown-Winchester. In 2017, 534 children under 12 attended at least one of its community events. Since homicide is the leading cause of death for 15 – 25-year-old African-American males, positive community-based experiences decreases the likelihood that they will eventually become either a victim or a perpetrator of violent crime.

MEDIA ALERT – April 26, 2019          
Contact:        Rena Daly, Media Relations Manager Catholic Charities of Baltimore
667-600-2007 rdaly@cc-md.org

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