LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Getting to kids as young as 8 years old before gangs do. That's the goal of a new gang resistance program at the Louisville Metro Police Department as violence continues to rise across the city.
The program, called Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.), sends trained officers into classrooms in an effort to steer kids away from gangs before some are even 10 years old.
Kenya Wade is working against violence on a grassroots level and said gang prevention is one solution to violence, but so is investing more in communities.
"I was raised in public housing, but I also had a beautiful background in public housing," said Wade.
She's an example of breaking cycles, crediting her mentors and neighbors for keeping her out of trouble growing up. Now, she's working to do the same.
"So that the youth have something positive to do, not just during the summer but all year round," she said.
She's doing it through Cycle Breakers Breaking Chains Inc.
"It's giving them coping skills to be able to interact in school," Wade said.
Across Louisville, there is a spike in violence. It's something Mayor Craig Greenberg said gangs are to blame, in part.
During a Metro Council Budget Committee meeting Thursday, LMPD Interim Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said the department is implementing the G.R.E.A.T. program in schools to reach kids as young as 8 years old.
LMPD Interim Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel at a Metro Council Budget Committee meeting on Thursday, June 8, 2023. (WDRB photo)
"That G.R.E.A.T. program is going to empower them and certify them in teaching gang resistance and educating our young people," said Gwinn-Villaroel.
This is just one of the several anti-violence programs implemented by LMPD and the city, including group violence intervention.
Wade said she sees children exposed to gangs at an even younger age but is more focused on reaching individuals.
"It is gang activity, but it's also just high emotions," she said. "So when they get into disagreements and their emotions, they just pull out the gun and pow."
Wade said she's not against the proposed budget of more than $200 million for LMPD — a department under a U.S. Department of Justice microscope — but hopes it's used appropriately in the fight against gangs and violence.
"Get those young, impressionable minds at a young age, and see whether or not we can be impactful so they will not go into a life such as that," she said.
In the future, Wade would also like to see more investment in the people of Louisville.
"The solution is investing into us," she said.
Gwinn-Villaroel said five officers are currently certified in gang resistance, and 25 more are in training — all in the hopes of making some kind of dent in the city's violent crime.
During Thursday's meeting, LMPD also explained they'll use funds on more license plate readers, weapons and technology upgrades. The chief expressed support for implementing more jiu-jitsu training for officers.
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