Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles

History

History of the Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles

Overview
Major Accomplishments
Video: Stop the Violence March

Overview

The Violence Prevention Coalition (VPC) is a joint venture of community-based organizations, individuals, and public institutions and agencies in the Greater Los Angeles area to prevent violence using a public health approach.

The Coalition was formed by the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health Services in May 1991. The Coalition had grown to over 900 members, serving as an informal network for community service providers and a strong advocacy force, producing informational resources, events and effectuating policy issues. The Coalition was recognized by the United States Conference of Mayors as one of ten successful model U.S. programs. Violence prevention coalitions in Nashville, Atlanta, Cleveland and Orange County California, have been implemented based on the L.A. model.

		VPC of Greater LA	Community & Society-At-Large
On the front lines of violence prevention	1991-92	First grant received First mission statement Responded to L.A. Riots First VPC intern Academia incorporated into VPC goals	Gang truce L.A. Riots
	1993-94	The "March" of 1993 First coalition chair elected First conference Hosted first VPI initiative Youth forums began	LAPD, Commision, police chief chaos (Gates, Williams, et al) Escalation of gang violence
	1995-96	First gun legislation passed Co-sponsored sexual assualt conference Silent march Inception of policy & position papers "As We See It" published	Nicole Brown Simpson murder trial of O.J. Simpson & verdict
Success & Maturity: Facing Bigger Challenges	1997-98	First Angel of Peace award Domestic violence training for pediatric ER doctors First annual basketball tournament Loss of active membership Award from Board of Supervisors Challenge grants begin	Community-based policing discontinued Chief Parks hired
	1999	VPC web site Million Mom March First evaluation workshop	Rampart Division scandal
	2000	First annual Dance for Peace Loss of functioning committees Impact on legislation Moved location to Vermont	Increase in gang-related murders Garcetti out & Cooley in Lockyear elected Bush in
Preparing for Transition	2001	Co-sponsored DHS statewide conference Junk gun ban Closing of L.A. County gun shows Tony Borbon passes away Decreased funding	Increase in violence Shift to outcome evaluations Sept. 11 Rampart police scandal
	2002	Endowment grant to build infrastructure Move to the most recent building 50 caliber ban by City Maryanne hired Carri on Board R&E committee Increased positive working environment at Wilshire Basketball tournament Three evaluation workshops	Leadership change in community: Police chief & city officials Push for more academic professionals to work in the community Chief Parks out Increase in murder rate in L.A. City California budget cuts Appointment of William Bratton as Chief of Police
	2003	Tony Borbon youth scholarship fund Strategic planning of 2003 Violence prevention "Now More Than Ever" conference First professional executive director hired Evaluation workshop series given 50 caliber state legislation Angel of Peace Awards

Major Accomplishments

The VPC was instrumental in providing data, testimony and technical assistance to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and the City Councils of West Hollywood, Los Angeles, Compton, and 23 additional cities in Los Angeles County. As a result, legislation was passed to regulate the sale of firearms, ban the sale of Saturday night specials and requiring trigger locks on every gun sold in the unincorporated areas of the County and the contract cities.

The VPC has helped to form fifteen neighborhood coalitions in Los Angeles County to address the issues of violence. The VPC helps to focus the communities on their own priorities and to provide technical assistance for sharing resources. For example, a community may have a domestic violence shelter, but lack support for children who witness violence, or cannot provide conflict resolution training for adults or children. Twelve of these groups held a local march to "Stop the Violence."

The VPC led the Los Angeles "Silent March" in 2000 (see below). Dozens of community-based agencies in Los Angeles joined this effort and collected shoes in their communities.

The VPC helped to organize the Million Mom Marches in Los Angeles in May 2000. These marches brought more than 5,000 Southern Californians to two Los Angeles Venues in collaboration with the national effort to reduce firearm violence.

In 2006, The VPC partnered with the Advancement Project to develop a report for the City of Los Angeles entitled: "A Call to Action: A Case for a Comprehensive Solution to LA's Gang Violence Epidemic."

For more information on the History of the VPC, please see "Developing a Violence Prevention Coalition in Los Angeles".

Video: Stop the Violence March

This video documents a march and press conference organized by the VPC to call for an end to violence in Los Angeles. The video is divided in 10-minute segments and total length is 1 hour 36 minutes.

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