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Philly's Gang Violence Strategy Doesn't Work. Here's Why.

Maura Ewing

December 21, 2017 |

The Appeal |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The "Focused Deterrence" approach to lowering gang violence was hailed as a success in Philly when shootings went down, but is that the whole story? The strategy is also receiving some notable critiques, including the claim that the social services and employment opportunities it claims to provide have been less than forthcoming.

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Lessons from Seattle: How this alternative to jail may be a solution for Utah

Erica Evans

December 20, 2017 |

Deseret News |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

A program piloted in Seattle and now replicated in several cities nationwide aims to redirect low-level drug offenders into a case management system that can help them change their lives by connecting them with social services and advocating for their wellbeing. The program is called Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion, or LEAD, and police officers can direct people into it if they are suspected of having committed a drug crime.

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As shootings and homicides drop in Englewood, a new optimism grows

Annie Sweeney

December 08, 2017 |

Chicago Tribune |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

In Chicago's Englewood neighborhood, a name long synonymous with violence and gang activity, a mix of robust, data-driven policing and community engagement reversed a spike in violence from 2016 to 2017 to a degree unmatched anywhere else in the city. A $1.5 million investment in the Strategic Decision Support Center enabled Chicago Crime Lab analysts working with police at the neighborhood level to pinpoint problems and respond quickly. At the same time, police took a less antagonistic stance toward residents. That and lowered violence produced healthier activities like block parties and job fairs.

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Meet Arachnid, the crawler hunting child abuse photos across the web

Edward Siddons

December 05, 2017 |

Apolitical |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba

For all the positive tools and platforms the internet has helped create over the decades, it can also be an extremely dark place, and has unfortunately enabled the horrific and wide-spread sharing of millions of images depicting child abuse, including of rape and torture. Artificial Intelligence - specifically the Arachnid web crawler launched by the Canadian Centre for Child Protection - is proving the most efficient and effective weapon in shutting down these abominable sites, combing through scores of data at a speed no human or government can match, and issuing takedown notices.

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Portugal's radical drugs policy is working. Why hasn't the world copied it?

Susana Ferreira

December 05, 2017 |

The Guardian |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Portugal, Olhão

After the fall of an oppressive and isolating regime, Portugal found itself utterly unprepared to deal with the rapid distribution of narcotics in the 1980s, creating a crisis that left 1 in every 10 people struggling with addiction. The country took a radical approach to rectifying opioid use through a huge cultural shift in the way it viewed and treated addicts - prioritizing support services and pioneering programs like needle-exchange and substitution therapy, and eventually decriminalizing hard drugs so that users could more easily get help, and drug rates have since plummeted.

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How Do You Clear a Pot Conviction From Your Record?

Lee Gaines

November 27, 2017 |

The Marshall Project |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, California

In light of recently passed laws to legalize the use of recreational marijuana, California legal clinics have set out to inform those with pot-related convictions that their convictions may be able to be reduced or expunged entirely thanks to a provision of Proposition 64. So far, over 4,000 petitions have been filed throughout the state to both reduce sentences of pot-related convictions and either eliminate or reclassify prior convictions as misdemeanors.

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How Do I Protect My Students from Gun Violence?

Robyn Jordan

November 21, 2017 |

Bright Magazine |

Illustrations |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington

Preventing school shootings is difficult, but there are basic strategies that can curtail them and lessen loss of life. Those include limiting school access and making all visitors check in, ensuring intercoms and other technology work, but also working to prevent suicide so someone doesn't engage in a shooting to get themselves killed. Schools also need procedures in place for any crisis to ensure everyone is communicating and coordinating and children are reunited with approved family members.

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How one school is rising above gang activity to find college success

Amadou Diallo

November 21, 2017 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Benito Juarez Community Academy in Chicago was once reputed for gang violence, struggled to support its predominantly minority students, and was had been on academic probation for nearly two decades. A revolutionary approach to academics that uses a skills-based model tailored to the needs of each individual student and emphasizes true mastery of a skill rather than memorization and regurgitation has had remarkable success, bringing Juarez up to among the top 50 schools in the state for graduation rates and test scores and making it a destination school for students of color.

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Armed, Anti-Racist ‘Rednecks' Take On White Supremacy

Leigh Ann Smith

November 16, 2017 |

The Establishment |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Durham, North Carolina

Millions of Americans, particularly the working class, LGBQT, minorities, and immigrants, feel left behind by the system, and in light of the revival of violence from white supremacists and the tumultuous debate on gun control, many feel that the only solution is to take the defense of their rights and needs into their own hands. The Redneck Revolt is an anti-racist, pro-gun organization that works to represent the working class - across race, sexual identity, and creed - and to protect their communities and interests from white supremacists and economic disparity alike.

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Inside a Philadelphia Prison, a Parenting Movement Grows

Christopher Moraff

November 15, 2017 |

Next City |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

When a man goes to prison, a child loses their father and this can have detrimental effects. It is especially troubling considering the number of men incarcerated. F.A.C.T is a parenting program that helps teach incarcerated fathers to be better parents while also helping to facilitate their involvement in their children's lives.

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