By Sector 213 Lt. Michael Phibbs
A major objective of the Southwood Community Partnership is to positively impact at-risk youth in the Latino community. However, upon reflection, when we created the original objective we had not asked the right questions. We then revisited our idea and developed new questions.
1. How
do we make an impact on a child who does not have regular positive contact with
or are afraid of the police? Without lasting positive connections to the
police, the children of the Latino community are in fact at-risk.
2. What
do we mean by “at-risk?” By at-risk, we mean those who are afraid of the
police, potential victims of crimes, or growing up and committing crimes.
After answering the first two questions, we had to find a
way to create a sustainable program which helps all Latino youth without a
budget or resources. Sergeant Rufus “Andy” Wilkins had the answer:
Soccer.
Second Precinct has many officers who currently play or
coach soccer and many were eager turn this idea into reality. Sergeant Wilkins,
Officers Oscar Reyes, Efrain Villalobos, Douglas Gutierrez, Chamreun Sopheap,
Erica Hall and John Perez, along with help from Officer Perry Barber and the
Police Athletic League (PAL) created the Southwood Strikers. The officers
knocked on Southwood apartment doors, recruited children ages 9 to 12, and
convinced parents to trust the officers to train their children for an
hour-and-a-half each week. The goal is not to train for soccer, but to
speak with the children and parents to create lasting connections.
Now we had the soccer program but needed equipment. Officers
contacted the local Boys and Girls Club to borrow soccer balls and cones. They
also used their own money to buy water, snacks, and even bug spray. PAL
purchased uniforms and a local faith leader brought practice jerseys.
After eight weeks of training, the capstone of the program
was a soccer tournament for the Southwood Strikers. The tournament may
have marked the end of the fall training program, but the lasting impact was
having kids spend positive quality time with officers each week and meet the
faces behind the badge. The kids laughed and played, while curious parents had
opportunities to meet and speak with the officers. The Southwood Strikers was a
small step towards building lasting relationships between the police and Latino
community.
