The ICARE Nehemiah Assembly is coming soon!
When: Monday, March 30, 6:30 – 8:30 PM. A bus will leave the BBUUC parking lot at 5:30 PM and return about 9 PM. Or you can drive directly.
Where: Abyssinia Baptist Church, 10325 Interstate Center Dr, Jacksonville, FL 32218. Abyssinia Baptist is the large church visible on the west side of Interstate 95 a little south of the Dunn Ave. exit.
Why attend: People Power Makes a Difference! Researched solutions for the Justice Issues identified in House Meetings in the 38 ICARE congregations will be presented to public officials for their adoption or rejection. The larger the audience, the more likely we are to get a “yes” answer! We are optimistic for 1,700 or more people to attend.
What are the issues?
Final issue cuts will happen in mid-March. Three areas are the focus of current issue work.
Criminal Justice Reform. Because of our collaborative work with ten sister organizations in Florida cities, Florida now leads the nation in effective youth pre-arrest diversion. The use of Civil Citations instead of arrests for first time youthful offenders has gone from less than 10% to over 80% in the past eight years. Recidivism for juvenile Civil Citations has dropped to as low as 4%! Current research is focused on unnecessary adult arrests. We are also continuing to work with Sheriff Williams and States Attorney Nelson toward effective website presentation of public information regarding law enforcement incidents of all types.
Youth. Our justice ministry got all principals, assistant principals, and deans in Duval County trained in restorative practices. Dr. Greene has been very cooperative with the introduction of a program called Safe and Civil Schools to most areas of school life. Groups left out of this training so far include bus drivers and substitute teachers. We are actively collecting stories from students and parents to build a case for needed improvements in these areas.
Health and Mental Health. Florida is 50th in the nation in what we spend on mental health. Duval County Jail is the biggest mental health provider in Northeast Florida which means people aren’t getting treated until they have been locked up. And the treatment in circumstance isn’t very adequate!!! There has not been an increase in funding to the City of Jacksonville’s Mental Health Match program in 20 years. There are no public mental health programs for children and adolescents outside of being Baker-Acted. This ICARE committee is looking for possible solutions that aren’t limited by the way we have been looking at the issues in the past.
To summarize, please bring the strength of your presence to the Nehemiah Assembly on March 30! And bring your family and friends!
Who Cares? ICARE.
When we all work together… GREAT THINGS HAPPEN!