MINNEAPOLIS — At the corner of 36th and Penn Avenues in north Minneapolis, a coalition of community groups gathered Tuesday afternoon to cook food, hand out shoes and offer various resources to young people seeking a better path.
Rev. Jerry McAfee, the founder of 21 Days of Peace, said the goal of the event was to "show people you've got worth and value." This particular block, which McAfee identified as a haven of drug activity and violent crime, is the kind of street corner where his work has become so critical.
"You've got a lot of different entities in the city that, if they can create the necessary synergy, we can clean these blocks up," McAfee said. "It won't be one group. It's going to take all of us to do it."
McAfee's 21 Days of Peace campaign, which dates back to 2021, has far outlasted the initial "21 days" of street outreach. His group now works closely with the city of Minneapolis and other community groups to prevent youth violence and intervene in difficult situations.
These initiatives appear to be having some effect. Although various factors can drive crime trends, north Minneapolis, as a whole, has seen a significant drop in violent crime over the past few years.
"While things are tough in Minneapolis," McAfee said, "we're in a good place."
According to MPD data, shots fired calls across the Fourth Precinct dropped by 18 percent in 2024 compared to this time last year, and by 40 percent compared to the previous three-year average. The number of gunshot victims within the Fourth Precinct also decreased by similar totals so far this year.
"We're pleased with that," said Sharif Willis, a former Minneapolis gang leader who has worked with 21 Days of Peace since leaving federal prison. "It's not at the numbers we would like — we would like for that to be zero."
MPD Chief Brian O'Hara credited a more targeted approach for the decrease in violence on the north side.
"North Minneapolis, over the last year, has been lower in terms of shooting victims overall, than what had been normal in the 10 years prior to 2020," O'Hara said in an interview this week. "So, yes, that's a success."
Traditionally, O'Hara said the Fourth Precinct has accounted for well over one-third of all gun violence in the city of Minneapolis.
While that still holds true in 2024, the geographic trends have shifted somewhat in the past year.
"We are seeing pockets of South Minneapolis experience violence," O'Hara said, "that's more than what had been typical prior to the pandemic."
As of Tuesday afternoon, MPD data showed a 22-percent increase in shooting victims in the Fifth Precinct compared to last year and a 34-percent jump in the 3rd Precinct.
Earlier this summer, federal prosecutors charged 10 members of a south Minneapolis street gang with drug and gun crimes, describing the particular area near Franklin and Chicago Avenues as a "focal point" of gang activity. That known hotspot was also the site of a quadruple shooting this winter.
Although 21 Days of Peace works primarily on the north side, the group has relationships with some south side community organizations.
"They're mobilizing over there. Some of the churches are doing prayer walks, and we just need to get them the necessary support," Rev. McAfee said. "If we can get them the support they need, we can have a greater impact."
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