Alton Committee To Consider $10,000 For 40 Days Of Nonviolence Initiative
Aldermen considering $10,000 proposal as 40 Days of Nonviolence seeks to support Alton youth with events focused on health, career skills, and more.
ALTON – Alton officials are set to consider $10,000 in ARPA funds for a 40-day initiative to host six weeks of nonviolent events and programs to curb violence in the city.
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A resolution appears on the Alton Committee of the Whole agenda for tonight, Sept. 8, 2025, authorizing the disbursement of $10,000 worth of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to the 40 Days of Nonviolence Initiative. The resolution was referred to the committee by Alderwoman Rosetta Brown at the last Alton City Council meeting.
According to the group’s mission statement, 40 Days of Nonviolence is “a faith-based and community-driven initiative whose purpose is to deter and ultimately eliminate violence in our communities through education, awareness, and job creation.”
Since its founding in 2014, 40 Days has partnered with several state and local organizations to host events and improve recreational facilities, starting in East St. Louis. Among other initiatives, the group facilitated the installation of three tennis courts in the city’s Lincoln Park in 2018, followed by another six tennis courts installed this year at East St. Louis Senior High School.
40 Days of Nonviolence points to a decline in the city’s crime rate from 2015 to 2018 as “proof” of the initiative’s effectiveness, according to their presentation materials. Of particular note is a 56.74% decrease in crime from 2017 to 2018.
The group lists 10 “Top Concerns Causing Violence,” which are, in order: social media/online imagery, access to illegal firearms, lack of connection to law enforcement/neighborhood policing, drug and alcohol use, gangs, sexual abuse/exploitation, lack of employment opportunities, family instability, lack of education/vocational skills, and poor economic conditions. The group also formed specific “problem statements” for the City of Alton.
“Gun violence is on the upswing in the African American and Little Mexico communities and in Public Housing in Alton,” according to the presentation materials. “Many incidents of gun violence have unintended victims.”
40 Days notes that small gangs and revenge may both play roles in some of Alton’s incidents of gun violence, citing the desecration of certain grave sites. They state there is “little-to-no involvement” from parents and members of the clergy in curbing this violence.
The group’s proposal is to help the City of Alton host 40 days of “violence-free activities” with focuses on tutoring, counseling, sports/exercise, conflict resolution, career pathways, and more. Their current plan for the city includes an “Opening Week” of orientation and sample activities; a “Health Week” emphasizing mental and physical health; a “First Responders Week” with military, police, fire, and EMT personnel; a “Civic/Religious Org Week” with local churches, the Urban League, and the NAACP; an “Education Week” with the Alton School District, Lewis and Clark Community College, and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE); and finally, a “Unification Week” to cap off the initiative and celebrate its successes.
The group provided two programming options at different price points: a $10,000 option for six weeks of programming and two weeks each of planning and outreach, or a $7,500 option for six weeks of “abbreviated programming” and one and a half weeks each for planning and outreach. In either case, the group would further encourage the city to “keep the momentum going” even after the initial 40 Days initiate is over.
Committee of the Whole members are set to consider the resolution at tonight’s meeting at 6 p.m. Follow the discussion and vote live on Riverbender.com/video, and stay tuned to Riverbender.com for the latest coverage on this and other agenda items.
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