ContactNews
Recent Press
SCLC LAUNCHES CONFLICT RESOLUTION INITIATIVE TO STEM VIOLENCE IN THE US, AND AROUND THE WORLD
During the month of July 2008, The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) announced an international program establishing Martin Luther King, Jr. non-violence conflict resolution centers in Europe and the Middle East, and forming a unique partnership in the United States with Mississippi Valley State University.
The conflict resolution philosophies of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be used to stem violence in communities around the world. At the Martin Luther King, Jr. Conflict Resolution Centers in Israel and Italy, the programs will provide technical assistance and training for police officers, teachers, community leaders, government officials, and others in developing conflict resolution skills.
“This is an exciting initiative,’’ said Charles Steele, Jr., SCLC President. “Our world is constantly threatened by outbreaks of war and terrorism. Dr. King would be horrified at the violence that plagues nations all over the globe. Our goal is to reduce violence in the US, as well as in nations around the world by training a cadre of conflict resolution specialists who will seek to bring non-violent resolutions to conflicts.’’
President Steele said that the conflict resolution center in Israel opened last year, and that the first center in Italy will soon open its doors. Moreover, the SCLC, working with the Inter-University Center, is establishing a curriculum at Mississippi Valley State that will teach conflict resolution as a course for college students.
Dallas Chapter president Rev. Bowman and member agree with Dr. Denis K. Muhilly, college professor that "It is crucial that we teach young adults non-violent ways to resolving conflicts. "We need to break the cycle of violence that is disrupting global communities. The centers can play a major role."
The project’s goal, Mr. Steele said, is to establish 50 domestic and 10 international centers in the next four years. Already, the SCLC is operating an affiliated "Ambassadors for Peace" program in Atlanta, in which the objective is to prevent the growth of violence in the school system and among young adults. The program offers ongoing training to educate teens and young adults between the ages of 10 and 25 about the benefits of nonviolent concepts to resolve disagreements.
In the US alone, Mr. Steele said the economic impact of firearm-related homicides is substantial. "The economic impact in terms of lost wages and earning potential for those who are either killed, or temporarily or permanently disabled, is more than $20 billion per year," he said. "Since most victims of violence are in their teens or twenties, nearly 40 years worth of wages are lost. The social and emotional cost to families who lose loved ones, and to those temporarily or permanently disabled, is enormous."
The SCLC, Mr. Steele said, "is on a mission to end this trend of violence. Dr. King started SCLC as a non-violent route to equal rights for people of color. Today, we want his legacy to also stand for non-violence, conflict resolution all over the world."
Rolling Gas Boycott in Dallas
Members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference(SCLC) and Dallas-area citizens staged a protest on Wednesday outside the ExxonMobil annual shareholders meeting at the Meyerson Symphony Center to demand decreased gas prices. |
 |
| Boycott Schedule |
The Rebirth of a Dream: The Re-Organization of the SCLC
By: Jacquinette D. Murphy - North Dallas Gazette
January 17, 2008
Founded in 1957 following the successful boycott of the M o n t g o m e r y Transportation system spearheaded by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) became an organization for social change and it still has an active presence in major cities across the United States of America today. Now, Dallas has once again joined the ranks of this historical organization with its reestablishment of the Dallas chapter by Glenn Lacey and Dominic Morrison at the request of the national arm of the organization.