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Cape Fear's Comprehensive CommUnity Violence Prevention Strategy

Cape Fear's Comprehensive CommUnity Violence Prevention Strategy (CCCVPS) is an initiative and implementation plan based on successful, evidence-based curricula to benefit the community as a priority, as well as address New Hanover County's acknowledgement of racism as a public health crisis and provide a solution to answer the City of Wilmington's call to action through the Rise Together Initiative.

The following is an overview of the strategy. Each section can be expanded for additional reading, or you can download a PDF copy of the full proposal document. For additional information, contact us.

The Problem

Violence

Violence is a leading cause of injury and death among marginalized communities. It has also been connected to poor health outcomes such as depression, anxiety, and diabetes, as well as high-risk behaviors such as drug and alcohol abuse and unhealthy intimate relationships. We know that communities of color are disproportionately impacted by violence, and among the many social determinants of health, violence has been identified as a primary driver of unfavorable health outcomes.

Decades of comprehensive research has established that multiple forms of violence intersect with each other, and exhibit shared risk and protective factors.

Wilmington, North Carolina's unique history, coupled with its current socioeconomic and political dynamic, cultivates and breeds an unacknowledged level of toxic insecurity that is perpetuated via laws, social norms, and regulations that diminishes opportunities for historically marginalized populations. Racism and its systemic capacity to justify and execute discretionary treatment of individuals of color continues to infiltrate the daily life of the citizens of Wilmington and its surrounding areas.

A Public Health Crisis

Racism has been declared a "public health crisis" because it continues to undermine the quality and longevity of human life in environments where it remains persistent in the lives of historically marginalized populations, as it has here in Wilmington. Within the multiple forms of violence, "racially motivated structural violence" encompasses two key forms that epitomize the reason we witnessed the declaration from our New Hanover County Commissioners.

A Call to Action

On August 18, 2020, Wilmington City Council announced a call to action titled Rise Together Initiative, in which they outlined not only the city's traumatic past but also their proposed stance and support of creating a better future for Wilmington.

Statistical Data

The inequity is further illustrated by statistical data published by the Cape Fear Collective Racial Equity Dashboard.

The Initiative

We intend to implement an adaptation of a proven, evidence-based initiative titled STRYVE (Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere), originally introduced by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and executed by the Multnomah County Health Department (MCHD).

Our approach is a very subtle, yet significant shift in the 2011-2016 MCHD STRYVE model. Whereas the STRYVE initiative in consisted of Health Department staff and executive personnel leading and then engaging multiple professional disciplines and community stakeholders in educating and collaborating in the implementation of violence prevention strategies, we intend to execute this model utilizing existing community leadership and infrastructure as the primary developers and drivers.

Implementation Strategies

Youth Empowerment Solution (YES)

A nationally recognized, evidence-based curriculum

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED)

A nationally recognized, evidence-based curriculum

Community Health Worker (CHW)

As a key role in violence prevention

Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR)

Community Healing Initiative (CHI)

The Outcomes

Per the STRYVE model, we will create a Multi-Sector Stakeholders Coalition whose purpose will be to engage in a collaborative process to define our priorities, identify expected outcomes, and create a timeline of implementation.

As a baseline, our initiative will seek to establish and measure community cohesion and collective efficacy.

Cape Fear's Comprehensive CommUnity Violence Prevention Strategy will focus on preventing and mitigating the negative impacts of structural violence and community violence (refer to Understanding Violence Typology in the Appendix section.)

Principle Coordinators

Quality Life Blueprint (QLB)

A community-based institute of learning, collaboration, and capacity building, with a focus on responding to the needs of the most vulnerable populations in America.
qualitylifeblueprint.org

Advance Youth Outreach (AYO)

An organization dedicated to reducing negative behavior by equipping our youth with resources and opportunities, and to educate our youth to come up with community solutions.
advanceyouthoutreach.org

Lily Nicole Nichelle - Consultant (LNNC)

Using art and culture to support and empower individuals and communities to advocate and facilitate transformation within their personal and collective lives.
lilynicole.art

Contributors and Consultants

Please refer to page 6 of the full proposal document [PDF] for a list of content contributors and professional consultants.

Appendix: Understanding Violence Typology

Multnomah County Health Department Community Capacitation Center: Understanding Violence Typology (adaptation)

The Cape Fear's Comprehensive Community Violence Prevention Strategy is headquartered at the Sokoto House. For more info use the contact information below.

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