Benton Harbor Mayor Marcus Muhammad says the first week of the city’s 21 Days of Peach initiative has gone well with churches uniting to hold prayer vigils and ongoing discussions on reducing violence in the community. Speaking on Tuesday, one week after community leaders announced 21 Days of Peace, Muhammad said news that Governor Gretchen Whitmer is seeking to spend $75 million of COVID-9 relief money on violence reduction programs will be good for Benton Harbor.
“Several cities will be targeted where those funds will be allocated, and Benton Harbor is one of them,” Muhammad said.
Muhammad said the curfew announced last week for those under the age of 18 is designed to benefit young people.
“We announced that it won’t be punitive where young people will be railroaded or brought in off the street and taken to the station because they may be out. The approach we’ve taken is to get them help.”
Muhammad said when a young person has nothing to do, the community should offer them something positive. Public Safety Director Dan McGinnis said there have been no shootings since last week and calls about shots fired are dramatically down. Benton Harbor Public Safety seized one gun since last week’s announcement, while Michigan State Police have seized four guns. Muhammad also announced the city on Friday will recognize a national day of prayer while churches continue holding meetings each day.
