South Phoenix Community Gets Guns Off Streets, Celebrates Monthlong Campaign

Phoenix police took more than 100 guns off the streets of south Phoenix today with their anonymous, no-questions-asked gun buy-back event in four neighborhoods.

Individuals who participated in the gun buy-back received a $100 gift card for use in Bashas’ and Food City grocery stores.

The gun buy-back program was part of the month-long Take Back Your Neighborhood campaign, which aims to eliminate gun violence in four south Phoenix neighborhoods.

The buy-back was followed by a campaign community celebration at the South Mountain Community Center, where hundreds of south Phoenix residents gathered to enjoy music, refreshments and live broadcasts from two radio stations.

The campaign’s four neighborhoods and their boundaries are:
7/11 Fight Back (7th to 15th avenues and Buckeye Road to I-17)
Lindo Park (19th to 23rd avenues and Roeser Road to Southern Avenue)
South Vista (12th to 16th streets and Roeser Road to Southern Avenue)
Hermoso Park (16th to 24th streets and Vineyard to Broadway roads)
Gun buy-back stations were set up in churches located in each of the neighborhoods, as well as a fifth station at the Phoenix Police Department South Mountain Precinct.

The community celebration closed out the Take Back Your Neighborhood campaign. Residents were able to swim for free in the community pool, eat free food and listen to live music.

Univision’s KHOT and Radio Campesina also were on site for live broadcasts throughout the afternoon’s festivities.

The campaign took place throughout June, with various community activities in addition to the gun buy-back program, such as a community awareness walk, job fairs and a neighborhood clean up.

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon teamed up with Phoenix City Councilmen Michael Johnson, District 8, and Michael Nowakowski, District 7, Phoenix Police Department, Neighborhood Services Department, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona, Silent Witness and Arizonans for Gun Safety to create a program that could help curb the gun violence in the four neighborhoods.

For more information about the program, visit takebackyourneighborhood.com or call 602-222-5400.