The 9th Annual Peace Fest- Press Release

Year after year, the Peace Fest brings out thousands. This year is not a stranger to the Phoenix community. There are many local and national performances, free food, and activities to entertain children of all ages.

Come be apart of Phoenix history and future.

Read press release for more details.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Peace Comes to the Valley and Stops the Violence

www.myspace.com/peacefest and www.kbeaonline.com

(Phoenix, AZ) April 5, 2010-The “Stop the Violence” Peace Fest was founded in April 1999 by Therman A. Stewart Jr. with the hopes of stopping the violence that was devastating our community. Our attendance from April 1999 to current has grown from 500 to 8,500 in the past nine years without one incident of violence which proves our community desires unity and peace. In a time of increasing violence, financial distress and economic frustration… it is important to stress and advocate the idea and promotion of peace.

It’s time to stop the violence with the 9^thAnnual Peace Fest being presented by B.E.A., Inc. and Sophisticated Gents. Guest speakers will include Senator Leah Landrum-Taylor, Representative Cloves Campbell Jr., City of Phoenix Councilman Michael E. Johnson and Vice Mayor Michael Nowakoski and many more very effective leaders in our community. There will be Arizona’s finest local artists, classic and custom cars, poetry, various community business vendors, Jumpers for the children and food and fun for all. We will honor those people who are stars in our community and who have worked diligently to help cultivate the community, as well as the people who live in it.

These statistics are the reasons that the “Stop the Violence” Peace Fest is important and must continue: A quarter (25%) of high school boys and 12% of middle school males took a weapon to school at least once in the past year. [Josephson Institute, 2006 Report Card on the Ethics of American Youth]. In 2004, 5,292 young people ages 10 to 24 were murdered -- an average of 15 each day. Persons under the age of 25 accounted for nearly 50% of those arrested for murder and 62% of those arrested for robbery in 2005. The number of youths involved with gangs has not declined and remains near the peak levels. The average age of a gang member is 14-21 years of age. However, gang members can be as young as 8 years old to the mid 30’s. 85-95% of all domestic violence victims are female. 1,232 women are killed each year by an intimate partner. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women. Approximately 1.3 million women and 835,000 men are physically assaulted by an intimate partner annually in the United States. In the past year, there were 2088 violent crimes reported in the District 8 Phoenix area.

The Peace Fest theme this year is to bring peace and unity to our community. With the series of Peace Tour/Block Parties that was done in key neighborhoods, we were able to meet with and affect these areas one neighborhood at a time. We would like the State of Arizona to lead the way in this important event to be a model figure for the world! Come help us bring awareness to the community and spread the word of PEACE on Sunday, April 18, 2010 at South Mountain Activity Center, 10919 S. Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85042 from 12 PM to 6 PM.

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For more information, interviews and media inquiries please contact Dawn Agent via email or phone. dawn@dawnagentpr.com or 602 824 9606.