Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin presented his plan to curb violence in Louisville in a press conference on Thursday. He thinks that patrolling prayer groups can make a contribution to reducing violence in the most troubled communities. He asked religious individuals to commit to gathering in groups, then patrolling each block every night at 7:00 p.m., for a commitment of no less than a year. “I personally believe in the power of prayer. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen the evidence not only in our communities, but beyond, and this is what we’re asking people to do,” Bevin said.
“You don’t need permission from me how to do it. You know, you walk to a corner, pray for the people, talk to people along the way,” Kentucky Governor said. “No songs, no singing, no bullhorn, no T-shirts, no chanting. Be pleasant, talk to the people, that’s it.”
According to Courier-Journal, Clay Calloway, an associate pastor at St. Stephen Baptist on South 15th Street, exited the meeting with Bevin after about an hour, saying he needed a “barf bag” because he was sick of the governor’s religious overtures. He and a group of clergymen admonished Bevin for failing to offer any political solutions as an elected official. “He didn’t say anything of substance,” Calloway said. “He has a responsibility to produce public policy, regulation and provide resources. We don’t need a sermon or him quoting Scripture, we know the Bible and we’re already praying.”
Instead of using taxpayer funds to curb increase in violence in Louisville, Bevin is proposing the no-cost solution – prayer patrols. The root of the problem isn’t the lack of prayer. There’s poverty, homelessness, health care needs and systemic racism to deal with in Louisville. Those require serious investments, which Bevin doesn’t seem to want to make.
"Unfortunately, I think he's already indicated that he's not interested in bringing resources to the table," Abdur-Rahman, director of Safe & Healthy Neighborhoods, said. "He's really having an oversimplified discussion about a cultural and spiritual deficit, which is really irresponsible at the end of the day."
Some people left the event encouraged by Bevin’s remarks. “We probably could be doing more and I did feel challenged in that way,” said Gray, CEO of Reliant Exteriors, who attends Southeast Christian Church, which Bevin also attends. “And to be honest, it’s the first time we’ve ever been asked.”
Mayor Greg Fischer, who was not at Bevin's meeting, said solutions to violence "are many, but a lot of them require resources obviously" from housing to education and health care. "This is not going to be solved overnight, so if anybody wants to help, we welcome you," Fischer said. Earlier this year, Fischer's office also said it wanted to talk with state lawmakers about a proposal to require that all gun transactions in the city go through a licensed firearms dealer.
The point is that the solution to growing violence must be something concrete, such as some legislation, because lives of citizens who are patrolling and praying can even be put at risk.
Photo Credits: StaticFlickr
