WASHINGTON DC (7News) — There was a moment of celebration today at the Martin Luther King Library in Washington, DC as 25 new graduates of Peace For DC’s Peace Academy violence interrupter training program received their certificates.
Among the graduates, Finesse Graves was chosen to address the packed auditorium. Full of enthusiasm, she declared that she was ready to begin work.
“It’s hard to intercept a kid jumping out of a car with a gun,” Graves said. “But it’s also hard not knowing what to do when that moment comes. The Peace Academy has provided me with an education that allows me to apply conflict resolution skills.”
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Marcus Ellis, executive director of the nonprofit Peace For DC, is confident in the work Finesse and the others will do.
“We’re seeing the strategy working,” Ellis said. “These aren’t just people from the community hanging out with the kids, making a little noise. They have unique skills to be able to prevent crimes from happening.”
Ellis is aware that not everyone believes in the effectiveness of community violence interventions. This week, the arrest of Ward 8 Councilman Trayon White for allegedly accepting bribes from a contractor that sells violence interruption services to D.C. only heightened Ellis’ concerns. He knows his approach will once again face criticism and distrust.
“It’s been a week full of questions and there will be more questions to come,” Ellis says. “I’m also grateful for the opportunity. It’s an opportunity to talk about the peacemakers in the city, the people on the ground who are doing this very, very hard work.”
Graves says she is ready to ask herself questions, too, because she herself was once a child who had problems. “This current trial is preparing us for something bigger, because we have already achieved results. We see them every day. I am a result of this practice.”
