Peace Institute News

Reports

Media Watch

Boston's homicide rate is sharply down. It's not just luck

Boston's homicide rate is sharply down. It's not just luck

For the past three years, the number of homicides in Boston has hovered around 40. But in 2024, the city…
Guiding Lights in Dark Hours: Community Partnership Supports Survivors of Violence

Guiding Lights in Dark Hours: Community Partnership Supports Survivors of Violence

While patients have their most acute care needs met in the hospital, long-term healing often happens closer to home —…
Lawmakers press bill on funding police alternatives

Lawmakers press bill on funding police alternatives

The grant program would be run by a board composed of representatives from specific nonprofit organizations, along with the secretary…

Media Statements

Louis D. Brown Peace Institute statement in response to multiple familial/domestic homicides in the New England Area:

Homicide is a uniquely violent loss for a family. Too often, as we all have been reading these past days,…

Louis D. Brown Peace Institute Statement exhorting freedom from violence:

For many Americans, Independence Day weekend is a time to celebrate freedom. Yet, for far too many of our neighbors,…

Louis D. Brown Peace Institute (LDBPI) Statement regarding yesterday’s deadly violence at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas:

Our hearts are broken as we continue to grieve and mourn the children, mothers, aunts, neighbors and friends whose lives…

Press Releases

Louis D. Brown Peace Institute Receives $2.5 Million Earmark for New Center in State Economic Development Bill 

The Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s Campaign for Peace — a drive to raise $25 million to build a new…

“Right to Heal” event to be hosted by Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice and the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute

Boston, MA | July 17, 2024 — Join Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice (CSSJ) and the Louis D. Brown…

The Louis D. Brown Peace Institute thanks state and municipal champions for supporting families of homicide victims.

July 12, 2024 Boston, MA – On July 11th, The Massachusetts Senate passed an Economic Development Bond Bill that included…

Newsletter

Learn more about the Peace Institute, including opportunities to speak with members of our team and view our newsletter.

Op-Eds

Stop the plague of child homicide with counseling, education and healthcare

As we begin a new year, we mourn the loss of those murdered. Just like the 43,368 families mourning the loss of a loved one’s life taken by gun in 2021, I honor the memory of my own son, Louis D. Brown, who was killed in a fatal crossfire shootout 28 years ago this month. Louis was only 15 years old. Since then, I have led the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute, principled in Louis’ commitment to the community, and to bring much-needed healing to families like mine.

Read More at WGBH

When it comes to funding nonprofits, the specter of racial bias hurts us all

While the non-profit sector is known for drawing the support of dedicated people who selflessly want to make the world a better place, numerous studies show that racial bias often creeps into the funding process, resulting in organizations led by people of color receiving far less money than those led by whites.
Read More in The Dorchester Reporter

Homicide is an epidemic, too As with COVID-19, we need a national response

TRAUMA COMES in many forms. The current COVID-19 global pandemic is leaving behind the ripples of trauma in its wake as families and communities are robbed of loved ones. People all across America and from every walk of life are grappling with the scale and scope of this crisis and will face the upward battle towards a collective recovery. We can and we will overcome this virus, but we must be intentional about building ourselves back up afterwards—and that starts with treating our trauma.
Read More at The Commonwealth Magazine

Commentary: We owe it to our children to teach them to choose peace, forgiveness, and healing

It’s only March and already 10 people have been murdered in Boston this year. The youngest was just 16. Since 1993, when my 15-year-old son Louis was killed by a stray bullet, Boston has raised an entire generation of young people whom we continue to fail. The young people murdered in Boston this year weren’t even alive when Louis was killed, and I can’t help but think how much change needs to happen if we are to pave a different path for future generations.
Read More at The Dorchester Reporter

Partnership aims to help survivors, end violent crime in Hub

Violent crime is a persistent problem in the United States. In 2017, more than 19,000 Americans died by homicide. That’s 19,000 families shattered and communities changed forever. It’s an experience that too many people have gone through here in Boston. In our city, violent crime has decreased in recent years.
Read More at the Boston Herald

Media Gallery

SHVAM 2021

Ayanna Pressley

U.S. Congresswoman (MA-07)

Marjorie Decker

State Representative

Nick Collins

State Senator

Sonia Chang-Díaz

State Senator

Lawrence & Rahsaan

Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Cheryl Lang

RonAsia Rouse

SHVAM 2020

Ayanna Pressley

U.S. Congresswoman (MA-07)

Maura Healey

MA Attorney General

Sonia Chang-Díaz

State Senator

Nick Collins

State Senator

Walter Timilty

State Senator

Marjorie Decker

State Representative

Claire Cronin

State Representative

Liz Miranda

State Representative

Liz Miranda (continued)

State Representative

Dan Hunt

State Representative

Dan Hunt (continued)

State Representative

Tanoy A. Burton

Inform, Influence, Impact Awardee

Ruth Rollins

Inform, Influence, Impact Awardee

Alexis R. Smith

Inform, Influence, Impact Awardee

Watch our 5th Annual Peace B'QUE

2020 Innovation Award

Transforming Narratives of Gun Violence