‘The Time To Act Is Now:’ White Center Unites Against Gun Violence with Feed the Streets
Photo courtesy of the Highly Hated Foundation.
A collective of community leaders, youth, and organizations convened last week in White Center, Washington for "Feed the Streets,” a recurring event where the community prepared and distributed free meals with the help of teen volunteers.
Spearheaded by the Highly Hated Foundation, partnered with the King County Regional Office of Gun Violence Prevention (KCRGV), the King County Department of Local Services (KCDLS), and Progress Pushers, the third “Feeding the Streets” event followed a recent act of gun violence in White Center.
Among the attendees was Deaunte Damper, Community Engagement for KCRGV, who spoke with key organizers and community members, including Highly Hated Executive Director Rasheed Smallwood.
“Highly Hated shows that no matter what the negative impact that people try to put on us, we can show a positive movement that’s going on,” Smallwood said, describing the organization as a youth mentorship program at its core.
The Impact of Partnerships
In partnership with Highly Hated, Gloria Briggs, Program Manager for the Participatory Budgeting Program from KCDLS, attributed the event’s success to genuine community connection.
“We’re building transformational relationships. This is real, authentic engagement. These are partnerships, these are friendships,” she said.
Also contributing to the event was Progress Pushers, an organization dedicated to guiding, educating, and empowering Black and brown youth. Jeremy Winzer, the organization’s Director of Community Violence Intervention, underlined the need for collective effort to effectively uplift youth.
“You can’t spell community without unity,” he said. “This work is needed, it’s wanted, and it’s the only thing that’s going to help really put the change forward.”
Winzer spoke on the concept of "safe passage" as the practice of creating a secure environment by having community violence interventionists present and ready to de-escalate potential confrontations. This approach relies on leveraging existing community relationships and connections to redirect conflict, ensuring that volunteers, youth, and staff can safely engage in community activation activities like feeding the streets.
"We have to get back to understanding that whatever affects one affects us all,” he said.
Photo courtesy of the Highly Hated Foundation.
A Voice for the Youth
The impact on the youth involved was clear. Highly Hated intern Abel Sampson said the foundation is a place for him to build meaningful connections.
“It’s been an amazing experience getting to know a bunch of new people, making new friendships,” he said of his time at the foundation.
‘The Time to Act is Now’
Briggs iterated a clear message for the community at large: the time to act is now. “The ball is in our court, and it is our time to show up and to be engaged,” she said.
Smallwood echoed the sentiment, focusing on the future of the neighborhood.
“The hope for White Center is to constantly bring this positive impact to our neighborhood and change the narrative of what people see, and give our kids the opportunities that other neighborhoods have,” he said.
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