Week of Peace aimed at curbing Durham violence
DURHAM, North Carolina (WTVD) -- Bull City United kicked off a Week of Peace Sunday with a candlelight vigil near Rochelle Street.
"We gotta think better. We gotta do better. We gotta move better. We gotta be better. You feel me?" said organizer David Johnson.
It's the same area where on Christmas Eve, 22-year-old Usha Chatman was found shot to death.
It's just one of a reported 40 deadly shootings in 2016. And it's not just fatalities, there have been dozens of non-lethal shootings.
Now Bull City United, a group of reformed convicts, wants to be role models and change-makers for young black and Latino men who are at risk.
"Our message is you don't have to do that and I hope that I am able to model that," said an organizer.
Bull City United is a county-wide initiative that began in November, modeled after a similar effort in Chicago, to stop the violence in Durham.
The group will hold candlelight vigils in eight of Durham County's most violent neighborhoods.
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Mayor Bill Bell attended Sunday night's event. He said he would offer any support the group needs.
