The International Alliance of Guardian Angels Los Angeles Chapter PO Box 742075, Los Angeles, CA 90004 Telephone (213) 716-2867 LosAngeles@GuardianAngels.org
*** NEWS RELEASE *** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Date:
April 20, 2003
Contact:
Ed Park, Los Angeles Chapter Leader 213-716-2867 213-384-6834
Red Berets Back on LA Streets Guardian Angels Offer New Concepts and New Programs Los Angeles, CA –Renown for patrolling the subways of New York City, the Guardian Angels are back hitting the streets of Los Angeles. They will conduct their first orientation and patrol at 5:00 PM on Saturday, April 26, 2003 at the corner of Hollywood Bl. and Highland Ave. Many things have changed since they began in 1979 when they were often accused of being vigilantes. The red berets are focusing more on building community relationships and empowering individuals. They still fight crime and practice martial arts, but there is now a greater emphasis on communication, conflict resolution, and psychology. “A while back in LA, we were more confrontational trying to take back the streets from brazen thugs and gangs,”states Ed Park, LA’s new Chapter Leader. “Today, crime is more subdued, sophisticated, and organized. It now takes the entire community to weed them out and keep them out. No one group can do this alone. We need to be more of a cooperative force.” “Most people think all we do is patrol. We now have programs for youth, self-defense, disaster and emergency assistance, and Internet safety. We also have chapters around the world from Rio de Janeiro to Tokyo. We’re still very controversial though. People still have difficulty wrapping their minds around the concept of citizen involvement. At first people didn’t give much legitimacy to citizen security measures, but now there are more private security guards than police officers. Every major police force now has a community relations department or public affairs officer. With shrinking government budgets, public involvement is now demanded not debated.” “Crime may have fallen across America for the last decade, but trends are flattening out. We have the potential for another crime wave especially in LA. We want to be proactive not reactive. We want to be more responsive to community needs and concerns. We don’t want to go to war on the streets of LA. We want to build up the institutions or create the community programs to avoid war on the streets of LA.” The LA Guardian Angels are now recruiting volunteers to fill both patrol and administrative positions. People can call 213-716-2867 or e-mail LosAngeles@GuardianAngels.org. ####