SITE OVERVIEW ♦ CLARKSDALE | COAHOMA COUNTY | MISSISSIPPI
Target Area: The Brickyard Neighborhood • Population: 2,900
Fiscal Agent: Coahoma County Sheriff’s Department
Research Partner: University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Crime Concerns: Gang violence, juvenile delinquency, aggravated assault, robbery, and other violent and property crimes
BCJI Funding Year: 2014 Planning
Neighborhood Profile
The Brickyard neighborhood is located in Coahoma County – a known corridor for guns and gangs. Throughout the years, the community witnessed a number of economic challenges including outmigration, systemic poverty, and declining resources. Currently, nearly 40 percent of residents live in poverty and the median household income is under $20,000. The neighborhood has a high African American population (93%) as well as a high youth population with an estimated 25 percent of residents under the age of 18 years old.
Crime in the target area is driven primarily by gangs and juveniles. The Clarksdale Police Department (CPD) discovered that young school children are recruited into local gangs that are financed through drug trafficking and other violent crimes such as armed robbery. Additionally, gangs recruit and entice school children with the promise of belonging and protection. The area also struggles with gun violence and witnessed over 100 gun-related crimes in 2013.
Planning Process
The BCJI project expanded upon work that was undertaken in Brickyard through the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Initiative. While Brickyard witnessed a great deal of success in declining rates of crime as a result of the initiative (gun violence dropped from 131 gun-related crimes in 2001 to 42 in 2008), law enforcement in the target area struggled to address gun and gang-related crime and violence at the end of the PSN funding term. BCJI partners worked extensively during the BCJI project to enhance the relationship between law enforcement, Clarksdale Neighborhood Watch, and Brickyard residents through an outreach campaign. At the end of the planning phase in early 2016, the Clarksdale Neighborhood Watch helped assist in a substantial crime drop. The Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office was also quite active in its community engagement and outreach. During the project, they participated in National Night Out, which helped raise awareness of crime and drug prevention efforts and generated support for local anti-crime efforts. Additionally, they helped sponsor numerous community events, such as Brickyard Day, where community members were able to familiarize themselves with the officers in accessible way and enjoy themselves in a relaxed atmosphere. They also hosted the Brickyard Neighborhood Revitalization event and invited law enforcement, business owners, community leaders, religious leaders, and volunteers to address crime in the community collectively and engage in dialogue to develop possible revitalization efforts.
In addition to conducting an intensive community outreach campaign, the planning phase involved an intensive data collection process to analyze crime drivers, identify community needs and resources, and evaluate appropriate strategies to effectively reduce crime in Brickyard.
Other Key Partners
Southern Bancorp Community Partners (SBCP), AARP of Mississippi, and Clarksdale Municipal School District (CMSD)
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