Khandi Gibson, president of F.O.A.M., has attended hundreds of murders scenes, consoling the bereaved, since forming the organisation in 2012.
Rise Bahamas founder Terneille Burrows believes that the frequency of homicides and violent crimes in this country has caused us to be expectant of such occurrences, to the point of becoming desensitised.
“I don’t recall the last time we have gone one solid week without hearing of any reports of assaults with a deadly weapon, rape, murder or the like in our country.
This is a serious cause for concern that warrants a more consistent and united public outcry and decisive action towards the development of intense and sustained social development and violence prevention programs.
When we see that children are more commonly becoming the unlikely victims of gun violence, we must do something.”
Event organisers believe that government, civic and corporate cooperation are urgently needed, to work towards making our country safer for all. More and more citizens are getting actively involved through supporting community organisations of their choice through donations and/or volunteerism, but the numbers are still relatively low.
We are calling on the government to:
- Research and consider implementing a violence prevention program similar to Glasgow's (The Guardian, U.K. article here: http://tinyurl.com/odc2eyv)
- Enact Marco's Law
- Fully implement all components within the Child Protection Act
- Establish a separate family court
- Educate citizens on their rights through public education
- Increase the number of social workers currently employed by the civil service and offer scholarships to encourage more people to enter the field
- Use schools in the inner city communities for certified weekend continued education courses
- Improve witness protection programs
- Offer grief therapy for survivors for violence
- Introduce rehabilitation programs for prisoners that are on remand
Those that can attend during lunch breaks, if even for an hour, are encouraged to do so. A representative from The Bahamas Crisis Centre will be on hand with educational flyers and another from Dr. David Allen's - The Family, People Helping People group will be in attendance to address inquiries about their therapy programs.
Sign the online petition at http://tinyurl.com/prioritypeace.
Families of All Murder Victims (F.O.A.M.) and Rise Bahamas intend to raise the alarm on the ever-increasing trends of violent crime and child abuse in The Bahamas at the "Sick & Tired of Being Sick & Tired: Make Peace Priority” protest on Rawson Square, Wednesday, August 5th, 8am - 5pm. Our country has the 11th highest homicide rate in the world. Reported cases of child abuse rose by 22% in 2014, and a family, including a little girl and boy were just shot by an adult.
