Want peace in the streets this summer? Make sure young people have jobs. | Jenice Armstrong
“When I was 16, a job saved my life because I could have [gone] down the wrong path,” wrote activist Anton Moore. “My job fair is targeted at the demographics that are involved in gun violence ...”
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross plans to have more officers patrolling city streets to prevent shootings and other crimes as the temperature heats up.
South Philly community activist Anton Moore wants the same thing, but he’s going at it a different way. The founder of Unity in the Community is trying to get people gainfully employed to reduce the likelihood that they’ll become a public nuisance.
He has spent the last four months organizing a Youth Job Fair for ages 16 to 24. It’s scheduled from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday at the banquet hall for God’s House church at 2730 Snyder Ave.
“When I was 16, a job saved my life, because I could have [gone] down the wrong path,” Moore wrote me via Facebook Messenger on Friday. “My job fair is targeted at the demographics that are involved in gun violence and other nonsense that is taking place in our community."
“It’s upsetting when I turn on the news or look on Instagram and see so many young people from communities throughout Philadelphia engaging in violent activity with the use of guns," Moore posted on Facebook. “We can complain all day, but if we don’t offer opportunities to our young people we will continue to see mayhem and carnage in our streets.”
Lots of job fairs are taking place these days. The third annual South Philly Job Fair also is scheduled for Saturday at 3400 Grays Ferry Ave., with a long list of employers expected to attend.
Moore’s job fair stands out because it’s largely a one-man operation. The 33-year-old grassroots activist did most of the work himself, although the Mayor’s Office of Black Male Engagement helped get 300 free Wawa lunches to distribute.
For some, that may be all they eat that day. Many who don’t find work will be left to fend for themselves.
If young people have jobs or are in school, they are less likely to get into the kind of mischief that Ross hopes to prevent by changing hours and assignments for dozens of officers this summer. As of Friday, the city had 133 homicides this year, an 8 percent year-to-date increase.
Moore does what he does because he realizes how hard it can be to stop dealing drugs and leave street life behind.
“Oftentimes these young brothers have records, so sometimes they need extra help with someone embracing them. It’s hard for people with a record to get a job,” he added. “I sit with these brothers and see the desperation in their eyes.”
Representatives from Home Depot, Starbucks, UPS, Rita’s Water Ice, Kicks USA, and Fresh Grocer are expected to show up Saturday to interview applicants for mostly entry-level positions.
“I applaud what he’s trying to do,” said Darin Toliver, a vice president and co-founder of Black Men at Penn School of Social Work. “It speaks volumes to who he is and his humanity, and who he really cares about in the city. We really need to thank him for the work that he’s doing and the work he has done to uplift his community and uplift communities throughout the city of Philadelphia.”
Moore shared a Facebook exchange he had Wednesday with a young street hustler who complained about having to look over his shoulder because he feared being shot. The young man indicated that he was ready to leave that life behind.
“Bro, I may have a job for you to get on your feet,” Moore wrote him. “I will know by Monday.”
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for that young man, and for all the others who want to leave the streets behind and get paid for doing an honest day’s work.