On May 3, three organizations came together to discuss violence in our community.

Our great city of Natchez has become like a war zone with lots of violence as we see it.

Natchez has started to look like other cities that have been plagued with violence throughout the years.

We met to discuss strategies for trying to get Natchez back under control and ideas of how we could reach out to the young people of this great community.

In attendance were Justice Court Judge Patricia Dunmore; supervisor and board president Calvin Butler; Barney Schoby, president of Natchez Omega Psi Phi fraternity; Jamar McCullen, teacher; school board vice president Phillip West; Vice President of NAACP Gwen Watson; vice president of National Action Network John Cooks; Melvin Davis, Mississippi Department of Corrections officer; Anjanette Kelly, police officer; Lillian Lee Ross; Marcus Isaac; Henry Davis, NASD employee; and a few more.

Our goal is to have all public officials, ministers, teachers administrators, law enforcement, sororities and fraternities, Masonics, Eastern Stars, whatever organization you’re involved with or any citizens of Natchez to please attend our next meeting at the Business and Civic League (formerly Wallace Center) at 7 p.m. today.

One of the things Dunmore spoke on at the last meeting was getting involved with children or a child. She and West both agreed that if people in the community work with children, whether at school, church or organizations such as Big Brother, Big Sister, etc., by helping identify problems they may be having.

Our goal is to take back our community and hopefully make Natchez the city it used to be so that our kids and citizens would feel safe again with that being said we would feel safe again.

With that being said we would like for all concerned citizens to please attend 7 p.m. today to voice your concerns and hopefully citizens would volunteer to work on our steering committee.

Jacqueline Marsaw is the NAACP-NAN president

Barney Schoby is the Omega Psi Phi fraternity president

Calvin Butler is the Adams County Board of Supervisors president