Johnson defends Peace, Not Guns
PNG was and is a way to address the epidemic of gun violence in our city.
IT'S TIME for the facts about Peace Not Guns (PNG), an organization that I started as a college student back in 1998 after my cousin was shot to death on the streets of Point Breeze, in South Philadelphia.
PNG was and is a way to address the epidemic of gun violence in our city, and I am proud of the work that we've done to raise awareness about this issue. It began with rallies and meetings, really just a community-based movement. By 2006, we incorporated PNG as a nonprofit, and it has always been a legitimate, legally registered nonprofit in Pennsylvania.
PNG is not a federally tax-exempt nonprofit, known as a 501(c)(3), and it has never solicited donations of any kind as a 501(c)(3). Nor at any time in the history of the organization has anyone come forward to say that they contributed to PNG with the understanding that they were contributing to a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.
PNG is permitted under Pennsylvania law to accept donations for its activities, which consist primarily of organizing and sponsoring a community basketball game each summer. We raise money for T-shirts and trophies for players, and we also have sponsored a players' "banquet" in the community. One year we also sponsored backpacks for schoolkids in the neighborhood. In years past, PNG received donations from the campaigns of several elected officials. My own campaigns contributed to PNG, too.
PNG is allowed to accept these funds under Pennsylvania law, and it has produced its financial records showing how the money was spent. Let me say that again: PNG has detailed records of its contributions and its spending. I also provided copies of these records to the press. They show that in almost every case, the individual donations are relatively small amounts - generally hundreds of dollars, not thousands of dollars. No government funds were spent on any PNG activity, and I have never profited personally from PNG. The facts show that PNG raised money and spent it in service of its mission.
The point of the annual basketball game, and the mission of Peace Not Guns, is to find ways to get people in our community talking to one another and competing against one another instead of resorting to violence. As previously stated, in 2008, when the organization's website was first created, it mistakenly identified Peace Not Guns as a 501(c)(3). I take full responsibility for this error, though, to be honest I wasn't even aware that the website contained this information.
Sadly, what's gotten lost in the PNG controversy is the importance of the work itself. Young people - particularly young African-American men - are dying on our streets every day. As a community, as a city, we must come together to stop gun violence in Philadelphia. It's literally a matter of life and death.
PNG is taking steps to respond to the criticism of its record-keeping and tax-exempt status, but I'm more committed than ever to our work on gun violence. And I respectfully ask my fellow citizens to join me in support of Peace, Not Guns.