“We are all saying today, enough is enough,” City Councilor Brian Worrell said Monday at a news conference in Roxbury. “We are calling for everyone to put down the guns, stop the community violence.”
He joined City Councilor Miniard Culpepper and others in calling for more resources to support grassroots organizations that work to reduce violence across Boston’s most historically underserved neighborhoods.
Culpepper said police are part of the solution, but real change comes from within impacted communities, and it doesn’t happen overnight.
Instead of taking a reactive approach, “we have to be consistent out there in the streets, promoting a culture of peace among our young people,” said Randy Muhammad, founder of 10,000 Fearless Peacemakers, a Dorchester-based group. “We need to be proactively in the community, building those relationships.”
Meanwhile, leadership of Boston’s largest police union decried a staffing crisis that has left the department lacking the manpower to properly respond to calls, especially on a busy weekend like July 4.
“Until we take back our streets, enforce the law, and have enough officers to do so, we’re just gambling that somebody won’t lose their life or get hurt,” said Larry Calderone, president of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association. “That should be an embarrassment to the city of Boston elected officials and the leadership of this department.”
Calderone described an incident early Sunday in Dorchester when disorderly revelers threw fireworks at the police. A crowd of several hundred people was effectively blocking traffic at the intersection of Franklin Hill Avenue and Shandon Road.
“While officers were attempting to gain control of the crowd and restore order, numerous individuals threw beverages, miscellaneous objects, and ignited fireworks in the direction of responding officers,” according to a police report provided by the department.
Calderone said three injured officers were sent to the hospital for treatment.
He argued that reductions in overtime spending have exacerbated the problem.
The department’s massive overtime budget, long a point of contention among police reform advocates, regularly places officers among the city’s highest-paid employees. Department officials said during a City Council hearing in May that they were working to minimize overtime shifts without letting staffing drop below necessary levels.
A Roxbury resident told the Globe on Sunday that she had called the police multiple times about noise complaints as a raucous block party continued into the early morning hours, but a dispatcher responded that officers were busy. Gunshots broke out around 3:15 a.m. in the area, killing one person and injuring several others, according to police.
“We’re woefully understaffed. We’re outnumbered on the street,” Calderone said in an interview Monday.
However, Police Commissioner Michael Cox refuted the union’s complaints. He said there were many factors that contributed to the recent violence.
“The lawless behavior of this weekend is a combination of large crowds, alcohol, illegal fireworks and firearms, and we will hold those responsible accountable,” he said in a statement Monday evening. “There is no correlation between overtime and crime.”
Cox said his department remains focused on strengthening relationships with the community, ongoing efforts that help prevent crime. He also said they’re continually adding new officers to the force and rising to the challenge amid a slew of major events this summer, including World Cup games, the country’s 250th anniversary and an upcoming Tall Ships festival.
“Thanks to the work of our officers and partnership with the public, crime is heading in the right direction,” he said. “As we work through the duration of an incredibly busy summer, public safety and officer wellness are our priorities.”
Overall, gun violence in Boston is rare and homicides are down compared to this time last year. But the numbers lose meaning when residents feel unsafe, said Steve Wilson of the Ella J. Baker House Violence Reduction Taskforce.
“Right now, to people that look like me, it doesn’t feel like the safest city in America,” he said. “So the work’s being done, and we’re going to continue the work.”
City officials often tout a holistic approach to crime-fighting, which means addressing the root causes of violence and investing in impacted neighborhoods. Mayor Michelle Wu recently announced her latest summer safety plan, offering paid summer jobs to Boston Public Schools students.
In a statement Monday, City Councilor Erin Murphy said she’s requesting a hearing on the safety plan. She also joined Councilor Ed Flynn in calling for a public safety summit.
Officials have not yet identified either of the weekend homicide victims. No arrests have been announced in the shootings.
“This weekend’s violence is a heartbreaking reminder that every life lost leaves behind families and communities who are forever changed,” said Clementina Chery, president and CEO of the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute. “Every homicide creates a ripple that extends far beyond the crime scene, and adds another family to a club that no one wants to join.”
Lea Skene can be reached at lea.skene@globe.com. Follow her on X @lea_skene.
