LOS ANGELES�More than 17 inner city youth gang organizations representing the Passage to Peace Coalition (PPC) signed a Grassroots Fair Partnership Agreement to coordinate their peace efforts spanning the next decade. The April 28 signing was witnessed by community leaders, residents, educators and law enforcement officials at the Community Self-Determination Institute (CSDI).

The PPC intends to educationally, economically and politically strengthen communities. With the agreement, PPC allies hope to advance a national model for gang-intervention strategies and evolve the program into a social movement for change.

Noting that over the years gang wars in Los Angeles have produced more deaths than some warring countries, Aqeela Sherrils, executive director of CSDI, said, "We�ve made progress since then, but there�s huge work yet to be done and a coordinated county-wide effort is called for to address the county-wide nature of the problem."

Agreement coordinators said that recovery programs for post-traumatic stress disorder and the Watts Grassroots Sports Leagues are just two vehicles necessary to maintain the peace process and bring order back to their communities.

Sheriff Leroy Baca said the peace truce presents a serious partner for law enforcement in steering youth away from gangs and violence.

"I think we need to always encourage programs for young people so that they know there�s a broad base of support and that law enforcement is not their enemy," he said, adding that although there are no hard numbers, prevention methods by the groups have saved lives.

Nation of Islam Min. Stan Muhammad of Venice 2000, which tackles issues of gentrification and education in Venice, believes the agreement�s timing is divine, and agreed that unity on all levels is key.

"I believe God has His hand on this thing and it�s just a matter of time before we affect the whole world with what�s going on here in the city of Los Angeles. Unity makes everybody�s job easier," he said.

Dwayne Holmes of Focusing on Aid and Creating Ethnic Solidarity (FACES) said that L.A. County is fighting on all levels to save lives and secure futures, but the coalition will not give false expectations or promote overnight successes because the current conditions in the communities did not happen overnight.

"We�ve been having one of the longest wars in American history between the Crips and the Bloods�longer than the Civil War, longer than World War II, longer than the Vietnam War, brothers have been killing each other," he said, recalling that until 1992, he had never witnessed the free passing of youth into each other�s neighborhoods.

"But today we reaffirm our commitment to peace because if we don�t come together, we will be lost and will continue to bury our children," he continued.

After the grassroots representatives signed the agreement, they formed grassroots commissions to create safe passage zones for each other and safe zones to assure that all neighborhood children arrive home safely from school.