How the mayor’s meeting with local gang members started
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The meeting between Memphis Mayor Paul Young and local gang members was orchestrated with the help of a nonprofit, HEAL 901.
Durell Cowan’s HEAL 901 nonprofit was instrumental in making the meeting happen at the request of the mayor.
Cowan, the executive director, says, “We can’t have conversations about how to help individuals without including them in a conversation.”
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He says the two-hour meeting included over 15 gang members.
“Doing violence intervention and prevention work, it’s easy to be in contact with these individuals and what we found out is that they were not hesitant in meeting with the mayor. And once again, this was not something that was in negotiation,” Cowan said. “It was hey, we got to do something about crime. I need a seven-day ceasefire. What would it take to bring to your community to prevent these things from happening?”
Cowan says the gangs want solutions too.
“It is different gangs, but due to the fact that me as well as my brother Delvin Lane from 901 Block Squad, we communicated on who we are bringing to ensure that there is no true rivals in the space to where they can be able to have that conversation safely and free. That’s important,” Cowan said. “These people are humans and don’t think that they want to be out here. Sometimes the things that you see are a cry for help. See when we talk about mental health and things of that nature, typically there’s not a conversation until we see a situation has happened. We got to get in front of these things. We have to and the only way you are going to do that is by hearing from them directly.”
It’s the kind of work that Heal 901 was founded on in 2018 offering training, resources, and mental health services to those in need.
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“They want mentorship, they want prosperity. The guys that are committing these crimes for funds, are not doing it just for fun it’s for funds,” Cowan said.
He says the seven-day truce that the Mayor called did happen. However, we didn’t see a total cease on crime because every gang is not at the table yet.
“But we have to be clear on this,” Cowan said. “You’re talking about the city of Memphis, which has over 40 different gangs and gang fractions. So having 15 individuals and some of those from the same organizations in the space is not going to lead to the immediate city-wide seven-day ceasefire. It’s a start.”
Cowan, who is also co-chair of the city’s Public Safety Task Force, says it’s going to take everyone offering alternatives to young people.
“We’re consistently working,” he said. “We’re working aggressively. But we still need more. We need more volunteers. We need more help. We need more support.
Cowan says another meeting has already been scheduled with the hopes of bringing even more gang members to the table.
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