CONTACTS: Mr. Tommy Joshua Caison, Founder and Executive Director, Philly Peace Park Telephone: (215) 307-7102, E-Mail: bringblacklife@gmail.com, Website: www.phillypeacepark.org Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, President, House of Umoja, Inc. (215) 473-5893, E-Mail: falakafattah@aol.com, Website: www.houseofumoja.net/pressroom PHILADELPHIA, PA (USA) – 18 December 2021 – Building on the success of Round One of the Gun Violence Cease Fire implemented in the Carroll Park neighborhood of West Philadelphia which resulted in no fatal or nonfatal shootings during the Gun Violence Cease Fire and a dramatic reduction in gun violence throughout the City of Philadelphia, that began on Monday, 20 November 2021 at 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.) and ended on Monday, 29 November 2021 at 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.), Partners In Peace, an intergenerational coalition of organizations and community stakeholders will unveil plans for Round Two of a Gun Violence Cease Fire at a Monday, 20 December 2021 - 12:00 P.M. (E.D.T.) press conference. The press conference will convene at the House of Umoja, Inc. at 5625 West Master Street in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Dubbed the “Christmas-Kwanzaa” Cease Fire, Round Two of the Gun Violence Cease Fire will commence 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.) on Monday 20 December 2021 and end 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.) on Saturday, 1 January 2022, IMANI, the last day of Kwanzaa. January 1, 2022, the last day of Kwanzaa is being declared as “Imani Day Of Peace” by Partners In Peace. In alliance with the Philly Truce Coalition, these intergenerational coalitions have selected six neighborhoods heavily impacted by Philadelphia’s gun violence emergency as the Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones for Round Two’s “Christmas-Kwanzaa” Cease Fire. The Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones will expand into the neighborhoods of North Philadelphia, Northwest Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, Southwest Philadelphia, and Kensington. “Partners In Peace is again calling for one hundred men and women from our impacted communities to donate two hours each day throughout the cease fire period which begins on Monday, 20 December 2021 at 12:00 A.M. and ends on Saturday, 1 January 2021 – Imani – the last day of Kwanzaa – which has been designed ‘Imani Day Of Peace’. Our goal is to negotiate Mutual Code of Conduct Interim Community Agreements within the neighborhoods that are components of Round Two of the ‘Christmas-Kwanzaa’ Cease Fire Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones. One hundred peacekeepers will form ten teams of ten leaders that will cover ten blocks within each of the Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones. This is known as the ‘10 -10-10 Strategy’. Partners In Peace in a grassroots and intergenerational partnership between the House of Umoja and the Philly Peace Park which has since joined hands with lead organizations such as Philly Truce App, Block Captains, the Black Male Council of Philadelphia, the Urban League of Philadelphia, the Blackwell Cultural Alliance, Fathers Rally Day Committee, along with many other organizations. In order for the violence to stop, for the violence to cease, it’s not going to come from more money being spread around, it’s not going to come from more police being deployed. It’s not going to come from more punishment. It’s going to come from God, the master, working on our hearts…You are going to see a renaissance. You are going to see the mightiest renaissance that we’ve ever seen in the history of our people and the history of Philadelphia once we establish peace. The new reality for Philadelphia, starting here this day, is a reality of peace,” remarked Mr. Tommy Joshua Caison, the Founder and Executive Director of Philly Peace Park (www.phillypeacepark.org). The designation of 1 January 2022, which is New Year’s Day and the last day of Kwanzaa – “Imani” – by Partners In Peace as the “Imani Day Of Peace” is rooted in an historically transformative event that occurred on 1 January 1974. On that date, leaders of Philadelphia’s street organizations signed the Imani Peace Pact which helped to reduce and end decades of bloody and deadly violence fueled by gang territorial issues that played out in the city’s streets and schoolyards. The signing of the Imani Peace Pledge, penned by the late Mr. David Fattah, patriarch of the House of Umoja, Inc. and husband of Queen Mother Falaka Fattah launched the successful “No Gang War In ‘74” Campaign which she coordinated. “In designating 1 January 2022 as ‘Imani Day Of Peace’, Partners In Peace under the leadership of Tommy Joshua Caison is building on the knowledge of the past – a past replete with collaborative, holistic, and African-centered solutions. The current gun violence emergency the City of Philadelphia is painfully reminiscent of rampant gun violence that extinguished lives throughout the 1960s and into the early 1970s. Back then, the House of Umoja, Inc. and incarcerated souls at Pennsylvania’s prisons brought warring gang leaders throughout the City of Philadelphia to the peace table in 1974. The ‘peace table’ took the form of a peace conference planned by a group of incarcerated souls. My late husband negotiated a peace treaty that took the form of the “Imani Peace Pledge™ which he wrote. On 1 January 1974, leaders of Philadelphia’s gangs signed the Imani Peace Pledge™ and they continue to honor the commitment to nonviolence they made nearly 48 years ago. They support Partners In Peace and are very proactive in establishing the Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones and implementing Mr. Caison’s ’10-10-10’ strategy designed to return peace to the streets. We are going back to the future to save lives, plant seeds of peace, and help eradicate Philadelphia’s gun violence emergency. A new generation of young souls is being asked to honor their Fathers, Grandfathers, and Great Grandfathers who signed the Imani Peace Pact forty-seven years ago and kept their word, by signing the Imani Pledge which can be found at https://www.houseofumoja.net/imani-pledge.html and not taking the life of another soul,” remarked Queen Mother Falaka, President of the House of Umoja, Inc. (www.houseofumoja.net). To learn more about the intergenerational collective of community stakeholders and organizations – Partners In Peace – and how you can usher in a “New Reality Of Peace” for the City of Philadelphia and support Round Two of the Gun Violence Cease Fire that commence on Monday 20 December 2021 at 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.) and end on Saturday, 1 January 2022 at 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.). the last day of Kwanzaa – Imani of the Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones, contact Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, President of the House of Umoja, Inc. at (215) 473-5893 or send an e-mail to: falakafattah@aol.com and Mr. Tommy Joshua Caison Founder and Executive Director of Philly Peace Park at (215) 307-7102 or send an e-mail to: bringblacklife@gmail.com. For further information about Philly Peace Park which has distributed 3,000 pounds of free fresh and healthy produce to community members since 2018 and, through several school partnerships, provides students enrolled in Grades K-12 with ecologically-based programs that comprise planting, harvesting, landscape design and construction, composting, pollinators, plant identification, and art, visit its website at www.philly peacepark.org. For further information about the House of Umoja, Inc. visit its website at www.houseofumoja.net.. Established in 1968, the House of Umoja, Inc. is an internationally acclaimed institution that has, for five decades, designed and implemented timeless Global Models for eradicating violence, fostering community development, creating economic sustainability, and addressing many of the key challenges that prevent boys and adolescent males from reaching their full potential and maturing into productive and successful adults. Its successful track record of positively transforming the lives of approximately 3,000 male adolescents and reducing gang violence, moved universities and institutions to seek the House of Umoja, Inc.’s expertise. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Prevention and the Center for Disease Control were among the institutions that sought the House of Umoja, Inc.’s expertise on gang violence reduction, youth programming, and community organizing. Former United States Presidents The Honorable James Earl Carter, Jr. and the late Honorable Ronald Wilson Reagan recognized the House of Umoja, Inc. for its pioneering work that has been documented in published articles such as “A Summons To Life”, by Robert Woodson of the American Enterprise Institute (www.aei.org) in 1981 and “The Violent Juvenile Offender”, by Paul DeMuro = and Richard Allison of the National Council On Crime and Delinquency (www.nccdglobal.org), in 1984.
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City Hall Roll Call: December 2, 2021 - Committee of Seventyhttps://seventy.org › city-hall-roll-cal › city-hall-roll-cal... 210937 (Jones): Also naming the 5600 block of W. Master Street as “David Fattah Way,” ... to commemorate his legacy as the co-founder of the House of Umoja, ... “Warriors make the best peacekeepers.” -Queen Mother Falaka Fattah
A Perfect Storm Raises An Army of Peacekeepers Partners In Peace Complete First Round Ceasefire Over Thanksgiving Holiday Week Philadelphia, PA - (November 30, 2021) The first round of a Gun Violence Ceasefire launched by Partners In Peace, an intergenerational coalition of community stakeholders and organizations, is helping to create a new reality of collaboration, unity, and peace efforts for Philadelphia. This first round began on Monday, 22 November 2021 at 12:00 A.M. (E.D.T.) and ended 12:00 am on Monday, 29 November 2021. Everyday peacekeepers canvassed within the designated ceasefire zone by handing out flyers, greeting community members, and connecting with store owners. Friday and Saturday community businesses were supported and a healthy walk from West Philly Peace Park to Malcolm X Park. The week ended on Sunday 28 November 2021 with a free-to-the-community family day at Universal Bluford School where there were learning and coloring activities for children (including a life size gingerbread house), games such as scrabble, pinochle, and dominoes, resources from LIHEAP application and housing support to food and clothing giveaway. Also, vegan chefs fed everyone the most delicious carrot salad and soup. Anthony Bannister, Community Outreach Director, provided V/R play, music, and literature from the House of Umoja. Philly Peace Park gave away mud cloth face masks and natural lip balms. Every Saturday for over 30 years, the House of Umoja has hosted weekly community meetings. In 2021 Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, President of the House of Umoja, reformatted the meetings to allow community members to present their solutions or businesses the first half hour and then the second half hour the community gives feedback and how they can help move the initiative forward. On November 6, 2021 some gang members who were part of the No Gang War In ‘74 Gang Conference and signed the Imani Peace Pact came to the meeting informing that they are organizing to help return peace to the streets. On Saturday November 13th, Mr. Tommy Joshua Caison, Founder and Executive Director of Philly Peace Park (www.phillypeacepark.org) came to the meeting to present his 10-10-10 plan to be executed around a series of ceasefires during the holiday seasons. The community loved the plan and the community then became Partners In Peace. At the request of Mr. Caison, the House of Umoja organized a press conference on Sunday, 21 November 2021. The Gun Violence Ceasefire is the brainchild of Mr. Caison and serves as the vehicle for creating the new reality of peace for Philadelphia he envisions. “As we discussed during the press conference, Queen Mother Falaka Fattah started the legendary House of Umoja in 1968 which grew directly out of the historic Black Power Conference. With her late husband The Honorable David Fattah, who was the chief negotiator for a peace conference attended by 500 members of Philadelphia’s street organizations held at 1810 Ridge Avenue, the former Farmers Market, they led the historic ‘No Gang War In 74’ Campaign which led to the 1974 Imani Peace Pact agreed to by over eighty street organizations which ended gang violence in the City of Philadelphia. Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, recognizes the great importance, hard work and value of all anti-violence groups in the city and is calling for all organizations striving for peace in the city to join forces to ‘Return Peace In The Streets’. The ending of violence in our community will spawn a renaissance that has not been witnessed in the history of our people and in the history of Philadelphia. Partners in Peace selected West Philadelphia as the venue for Round One of the Gun Violence Cease Fire. The West Philadelphia Gun Violence Ceasefire Zone is at 49th Street through 59th Street from Girard Avenue to Master Street and encompasses the Carroll Park neighborhood which is a component of a Violence-Free Zone in Philadelphia’s 19th Police District. Carroll Park is bounded by Girard Avenue to the South of Lansdowne Avenue to the North, North 63rd Street to the West and North 53rd Street to the East. So far we have distributed over 5,000 pieces of literature that call for a truce, a ceasefire, and to uphold life. We knocked on the doors of at least 450 homes informing members of the community about the ceasefire and Partners In Peace. Partners In Peace is calling for one hundred men and women from our impacted communities to donate two hours per day for the ceasefire periods. With a goal to negotiate Mutual Code Of Conduct Interim Community Agreements, the 100 Peacekeepers will form ten teams of ten leaders to cover ten blocks within a ceasefire zone. This is known as the ‘10 -10-10 Strategy’ which I developed,” Mr. Caison remarked. Partners In Peace debriefed on Monday, November 29, 2021 to determine the progress of Round One of the Gun Violence Ceasefire and its review of the Philadelphia Police Department’s gun violence statistics revealed that no incidences of fatal and nonfatal gun violence were reported in the Carroll Park Gun Violence Ceasefire Zone on Thanksgiving Day. Research conducted by Partners In Peace of statistics for Calendar Year 2021 identified West Philadelphia and North Philadelphia as “gun violence hot spots”. The research also identified individuals in the 18 to 30 age group as the age group that has sustained and continues to sustain the highest number of fatal and nonfatal gun violence injuries, while individuals in the 31 to 45 age group are the next highest age group sustaining and continuing to sustain fatal and nonfatal gun violence injuries. High unemployment and high levels of food insecurity exist in each of these gun violence hot spots. Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, President of the House of Umoja and mentor for the Partners In Peace, elaborated, “In addition to calling for a truce and ceasefire, establishing Gun Violence Cease Fire Zones, and placing peacekeepers in the Gun Violence Cease Fire Zone to patrol their neighborhoods, we are going back to the future. When we state ‘Return peace to the streets,’ we acknowledge that there once was peace in the streets. We are returning to strategies that worked with the people who manifested the peace. Fifty years ago, in 1971 the City of Philadelphia was traumatized by violence fueled by bloody and deadly gang warfare. That year 435 souls were victims of gun violence. Now 50 years later, in 2021, the City of Philadelphia once again finds itself grappling with out-of-control gun violence. On January 1, 1974, more than 500 gang members from across the city met in North Philadelphia to discuss a way to end their territorial blood war. The killings were going on. They were raging. My late husband Mr. David Fattah and I opened our home in 1969 to gang members. It had become a respite for young men seeking peace, and we asked them how to end the bloodshed, which was being recorded with daily scores in the local newspaper. We visited every prison in Pennsylvania where there were gang members incarcerated, and we asked them to help us plan the conference. They picked New Year’s Day – 1 January 1974. They said everyone makes New Year’s resolutions. Mothers were being shot, children were being killed, and little children could not come outside to play. My husband David Fattah wrote the Imani Pledge which was a peace pact and helped broker the peace agreement among the gangs. We had it set up United Nations-style. We had all these people sitting in a circle, and we were resolving conflicts. During his lifetime, when my husband looked back at how the peace agreement between the gangs came about, he remarked that the question of manhood changed and asked, “Would you show strength by killing somebody, or could you show strength by not killing somebody and being a man of your word?’ By the end of 1974, eighty leaders from Philadelphia’s 105 gangs had signed the Imani Pledge. The souls who signed the Imani Pledge kept their word. They have not engaged in violence in 47 years. They are now Fathers, Grandfathers and some are Great Grandfathers. Here we are 47 years later, and we are asking a new generation of young souls to usher in the new reality of peace for Philadelphia by signing the Imani Pledge. Partners In Peace are asking a new generation of young souls to honor their Fathers, Grandfathers, and Great Grandfathers by not only signing the Imani Pledge, but by showing their strength by not taking the life of another soul and keeping their word. Strength and manhood is about keeping your word and not about taking the life of another soul. The Imani Pledge can be found at https://www.houseofumoja.net/imani-pledge.html." To learn more about the intergenerational collective of community stakeholders and organizations – Partners In Peace – and its Gun Violence Ceasefire Zones and how you may help and volunteer, contact Queen Mother Falaka Fattah, President of the House of Umoja, Inc. at (215) 473-5893 or send an e-mail to: falakafattah@aol.com and Mr. Tommy Joshua Caison Founder and Executive Director of Philly Peace Park at (215) 307-7102 or send an e-mail to: bringblacklife@gmail.com. For further information about Philly Peace Park which has distributed 3,000 pounds of free fresh and healthy produce to community members since 2018 and through several school partnerships provides students enrolled in Grades K through 12 with ecologically-based programs that comprise planting, harvesting, landscape design and construction, composting, pollinators, plant identification, and art, visit its website at www.philly peacepark.org. For further information about the House of Umoja, Inc. visit its website at www.houseofumoja.net.. Established in 1968, the House of Umoja, Inc. is an internationally acclaimed organization recognized by former United States Presidents The Honorable James Earl Carter, Jr. and the late Honorable Ronald Reagan. for its pioneering work in the areas of gang reduction, youth programming, and community organizing which has been documented in published articles such as A Summons To Life, by Robert Woodson of the American Enterprise Institute in 1981 and The Violent Juvenile Offender by Paul DeMuro and Richard Allison of the National Council On Crime And Delinquency in 1984. UMOJA MAGAZINE ASKS THE DIASPORA’S “NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS”: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?27/9/2021 PHILADELPHIA, PA (USA) – 20 September 2021 – Souls of African descent from ages 18 through 25 are the Diaspora’s “Next Generation Of Leaders”. What are their concerns? What are the most challenging aspects of their lives? What is the vision they have for their future, their community’s future, and the future of the world they will inherit when their Elders pass the baton of leadership to them? How will they create and nurture fully functional and sustainable family units, economically vibrant and self-sufficient communities, and a peaceful world? Where do we go from here?
UMOJA Magazine was founded in 1968 by Queen Mother Falaka Fattah. It is published quarterly by the House of Umoja, Inc. (www.houseofumoja.net), an internationally acclaimed organization which has a fifty-three year successful track record in positively transforming the lives of adolescent male youths, is asking the Diaspora’s “Next Generation Of Leaders” – souls from the ages of 18 through 25 – to provide their community with a blueprint for the future. The publication has issued a “Call For Submissions” for its “Where Do We Go From Here?” Youth Edition which will be released on 1 January 2022, the last day of Kwanzaa – Imani – and the first day of the New Year. Submissions for the “Where Do We Go From Here?” Youth Edition of UMOJA Magazine should be forwarded by writers from 18 through 25 years of age on or by 30 November 2021 by e-mail to falakafattah@aol.com. A panel of judges will be convened to select the best article and the writer of the best article will be the recipient of a scholarship. In addition to writers UMOJA Magazine is searching for panelists to review incoming articles and select the best articles and sponsors to contribute to the scholarship that will be awarded to the winner of the best article which will be published in the “Where Do We Go From Here?” Youth Edition of UMOJA Magazine. For further information about the House of Umoja, Inc., call (215) 473-5893, send an e-mail to: falakafattah@aol.com, or visit the organization’s website at www.houseofumoja.net. PRESS: DOWNLOAD PDF HERE
EVENT: RAHK THE BLOCK commUNITY FESTIVAL & CONCERT UMOJA IMPACT WEEK 2021 DATE: Saturday, September 4, 2021 TIME: 12PM - 7PM (see schedule) PURPOSE: To Nourish the Season of “Growing Peace” during The House of Umoja’s 53rd Anniversary Community Gathering feat. Bury Your Beefs and Volunteerism Recognition “The Family is the problem and the Family is the solution.” - Queen Mother Falaka Fattah Saturday, September 4, 2021 the House of Umoja closes out its 53rd Anniversary and UMOJA IMPACT WEEK with a kinship community celebration featuring crafters, VR and drone demos, community concert, open mic, Bury Your Beefs Ceremony, and Recognition of Volunteerism at the House of Umoja. Everybody calls her, “Mom.” Queen Mother Falaka Fattah the matriarch of the Fattah clan and Carroll Park community welcomes extended family to celebrate unity in practice. Craft, makers, and resource vendors such as AHARI - A Home Is A Right provide unique wares and giveaways. As always, there will be a ceremonious opening with the drums and acknowledgement of the ancestors in the Field of Dreams (Louise C. West Playground) followed by drone and VR play to the backdrop of conscious music mixes, and then featured artist HEZEKIAH performs live as he brings Family and Forgiveness to the forefront in his emcee pop-soul music set. After Hezekiah the family convenes in the Peace Garden for the Bury Your Beefs Ceremony where we record our beefs on biodegradable paper and bury them in flower beds. Then “Mom” feeds the family after acknowledging the great volunteer work of 20 souls. The family returns to the Field of Dreams for open mic and spotlight live performances featuring Kali Rah, Rio, Hobbs, and more. Artists performances funded by the Illuminate The Arts Grant. Live stream by Light-Thief Productions. SCHEDULEFIELD OF DREAMS (1417-1431 N. Frazier Street - Host & DJ Anthony Bannister-Fattah) 2P OPENING CEREMONY drumming by Hakim Starkey 2P-4P Drone & VR Play • Vendor Visits • GiveAways 4P Live Performances by JAHKEYA and HEZEKIAH featuring hit single FORGIVENESS PEACE GARDEN (5625 Master Street (Rear) - Queen Mother Falaka Fattah) 4:30P BURY YOUR BEEFS Ceremony in the Peace Garden 5P Recognition of Volunteers & Chow Time FIELD OF DREAMS (1417-1431 N. Frazier Street) 5:30P-6:30P Rahk The Block Open Mic & Concert featuring Rios, Hobbs, Kali Rah, and more ### Principles available for interview ### CONTACT: Queen Mother Falaka Fattah (215) 473-5893 falakafattah@aol.com www.houseofumoja.net/pressroom Staff Photographer: Marckwell MC McClain - High resolution photos available upon request |