In Brownsville, Brooklyn, community members, led by Dushoun Almond (Bigga) and the Brownsville Safety Alliance, hold a weekly event where residents address public safety issues. During one incident, Bigga and his team intervened in a potential fight in a laundromat, transforming a hostile situation into a peaceful dialogue. Their approach prevents violence through community engagement and conversation, emphasizing self-reliance in neighborhood safety rather than depending solely on police forces. This strategy not only defuses conflicts but strengthens community ties.
One of the men involved, who'd bolted moments earlier, came stumbling back toward the laundromat, the afternoon sun illuminating a swollen and bloody face from what turned out to be a fistfight.
Bigga warned the man of the potential repercussions. 'You just told all these people out here you know where he lives,' he said. 'What do you think could happen?'
What could have been an ugly moment turned into something smaller, and for that handful of tense minutes, public safety in the heart of Brownsville was in the hands of its own residents.
For the founders of the Brownsville Safety Alliance, that is exactly the point. The Alliance takes place for one week each quarter.
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