In response to the latest violence in Wilmington, Councilman Joe Buscaino and LAPD Harbor Division Captain William Hayes have formed “Wilmington United,” a community organization created to empower residents to take back their neighborhoods from violence.

The group will consist of representatives from schools, community-based organizations, gang prevention programs, local businesses and churches.

The first meeting took place Tuesday at LAPD Harbor Division and was attended by Captain Hayes, the principal of Banning High School, the principal of Wilmington Middle School, representatives from Councilman Buscaino’s office, Congresswoman Janice Hahn’s office, the Toberman Neighborhood Center, the Gang Alternatives Program, the City of LA Crisis Response Team, and other community members.

“No neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles should experience the horror of having anyone, especially teenagers, gunned down in its streets. I want this task force organized to share valuable information with LAPD and to help deliver desperately need resources to Wilmington,” said Councilman Buscaino.

“This group that met here today will empower others to take ownership of their community. The success will be with the citizens of Wilmington. Once the citizens of Wilmington decide that they will do good things in their community, it will all happen, we’re going to be the empowerment of it,” said Robert Lopez, Principal of Banning High School in Wilmington.

“What we want to do is empower people to get things done using the existing resources, whether its the Council office or the Police Department. The community has gotten a label because of a couple crimes of violence. They are very tragic, but it’s not typical of what is going on in the community and with the people that live there. So what we want to do is to get the good people in the community to focus on making the things that are good even better,” said LAPD’s Captain William Hayes.

Gloria Lockhart, retired president and CEO of the Toberman Neighborhood Center in San Pedro, joins the Councilman’s 15th District staff as a Senior Adviser whose first duties will include helping to organize the Wilmington United group.

“Unfortunately lives have been lost in Wilmington, but we’re going to take that as a way to create an opportunity for the community to take back their neighborhoods,” said Lockhart.

(Article and photo was provided by Branimir Kvartuc, Communications Director of Councilman Joe Buscaino’s office)