Wrap Up Forum Tonight on Violence Prevention

The Roseville Human Rights Commission will lead a wrap-up meeting tonight (Tuesday) on its dialogue series titled "Creating a Safe and Connected Community."

The second and final violence prevention forum will be held at 6 p.m.  today in the Fireside Room at the Roseville Skating Center, 2661 Civic Center Drive. A free light supper (which required registration) at 5:15 p.m. will precede the forum.

This wrap-up dialogue is open any one and you need not have attended the first session.

Forum organizers report that more than 40 people attended the the first violence prevention dialogue on April 30. (The series is being funded by a grant from the Bush Foundation.)

Gary Grefenberg, chairman of the city Human Right Commission, said he told participants that the dialogue "was not a panel of experts telling us what the causes of violence are and how to prevent it as a community.  You are the expert."  Participants broke into small groups  to discuss the topic. 

Here's what else Grefenberg said about the meeing:

"Ariella Tilsen, an event facilitator, invited the participants to look for the moments in their lives when they did feel safe and connected, and to explore those possibilities individually and collectively.  Tilsen advised participants that the knowledge and wisdom was already present in each person to create a safe and connected Roseville. 

The Dialogue process followed the World Café model for creating a network of collaborative discussion around questions that matter in real life situations.  Tilsen told participants that they would break into groups of no more than five participants who would begin the dialogue by responding to the first question: When have you experienced being in community, and felt safe and connected in your community.

That began an evening of vigorous and honest discussion between the more than forty participants.  Three times during the program new groups were formed, with each participants having to join new group to share and learn each others perceptions on feeling safe and connected in their neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces.

 During the last part the small groups merged into one dialogue where all participants assessed the final challenge: How might we foster a safe and connected Roseville, both individually and collectively in our neighborhoods, schools, businesses, and more. A lengthy list of possible ways to achieve that goal was developed, which will form the basis of the second and last dialogue on May 14."

Other supporters of the dialogue forums are the Roseville Police Department and Roseville School District 623. 

For further information contact Grefenberg at ggrefenberg@comcast,net or 651-645-6161; Kris Doneen, Human Rights Commissioner and Chair of its Program Planning Committee at  kdoneen@comcast.net or 651-260-2744 or Megan Dushin, member of the planning committee, at mdushin@gmail.com.