Vision

“57+ Blocks” is the working name for a strategy aimed at reducing gun violence and addressing its harmful impacts on our hardest hit neighborhoods through targeted investment of resources, services, education, and environmental improvements. This strategy is designed to bring non-law enforcement, evidence-based services and improvements to the people and places that need them most.

Overview

In 2021, the Philadelphia Inquirer published "Intersections of Injustice," an article that identified 57 blocks where 10 or more people have been shot since 2015. Further, 53 out of 57 of these blocks were historically redlined. Inspired by this work, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office (DAO) and community partners launched the 57+ Blocks Coalition, a community-led coalition that supports place-based, non-law enforcement strategies to reduce gun violence through the targeted investment of resources, services, and environmental improvements.

The initial Inquirer analysis identified 57 Blocks with 10 or more shootings since 2015. Approximately 53 out of the 57 identified blocks were historically redlined, which was the denial of access to mortgages, resulting in strategic disinvestment and cycles of poverty in predominantly Black and Latin(x) communities. Building upon these findings, the District Attorney’s Transparency Analytics Lab (DATA Lab) conducted analyses to identify the locations of shootings and relevant case outcomes. Upon expanding on this analysis, the DATA Lab identified that there were 89 Blocks with 10 or more shooting victims between January 1, 2015, and August 9, 2023.

In the last year, the 57+ Blocks working group coordinated a series of community conversations across the city of Philadelphia. Throughout these community organizing efforts, the 57+ Blocks Coalition has engaged hundreds of community members and has grown into a collective of 70+ community-based organizations from across the city who are invested in reducing gun violence through the strategies uplifted by the 57+ Blocks Coalition.

Our strategy is built upon the following pillars

Community-Led Coalition

The work should be led by the people who are closest to the pain.

Place-based

Resources, interventions, and investments should be targeted to places with high rates of gun violence and a history of disinvestment.

Non-law Enforcement

The city extensively funds law enforcement to thwart gun violence; this strategy aims to uplift interventions led by community that reduces gun violence and improves neighborhood quality of life.

Public Health Emergency

The gun violence is a public health emergency and it requires a multidisciplinary and collaborative response to effectively reduce the violence.

Racial Justice Crisis

Gun violence is a racial justice issue that heavily impacts Black and brown people and neighborhoods. We propose using restorative justice practices to inform interventions and long-term community organizing.
To do this work, it will take a multi-disciplinary and collaborative approach that centers the voices and needs of the various communities and neighbors impacted by this issue. The 57+ Blocks Coalition is a city-wide collective and we welcome you to join this growing movement.