Peacebuilding in Southeast San Diego: Global Nonviolence Strategies Put the Power of Peace Back into the Hands of the Community

Laila Aziz has a vision for Southeast San Diego. She hopes for “young people to feel safe as they walk to school — and if they don’t feel safe, they have a community to help them. Young people can play and develop in safe places. They can ride their bikes again and their parents know they will be okay.” 

This surely is a hope and expectation shared by families everywhere. But Aziz, who leads the nonprofit Pillars of the Community (POTC), sees where this vision has fallen short in her own community. Southeast San Diego boasts culturally rich and highly diverse communities, including the largest population of Black residents in both the City and County of San Diego. It also clocks disproportionately high crime and incarceration rates compared to other areas of the city. The result? Generations of families left to bear the brunt of compounding effects of violence and trauma. 

Since its inception more than a decade ago, POTC has worked in deep partnership with the community to counter the systemic criminalization of Southeast San Diego neighborhoods. Aziz and her team have overseen an ever-growing range of civic engagement initiatives designed to empower and connect community members and to strengthen the voices of those most disenfranchised. And when the pandemic hit and violence spiked significantly in Southeast San Diego, POTC was uniquely positioned to engage the community using peacebuilding and community safety strategies.

Peacebuilding: Universal Values, Community-Led Solutions

First used in reconstruction efforts in global conflict zones, peacebuilding is increasingly practiced in the smaller-scale context of communities experiencing violence and hate — both in the U.S. and around the world. Specific strategies may vary, but the long-term success of all peacebuilding hinges on resilience: strengthening people’s and communities’ ongoing ability to handle conflicts without resorting to violence. Using the peacebuilding model, Pillars of the Community has been able to elevate and broaden its work within the Southeast San Diego community, not only decreasing violence, but also promoting genuine empathy and understanding along lines of race, immigration status, sexual orientation, and religion.

During the pandemic, POTC began using the peacebuilding model to engage in dialogue with community members and identify bigger-picture issues that lead to violence, including food insecurity and substance abuse. This prompted new collaborations with local service providers and policymakers across the City and County of San Diego to connect communities to services and support mechanisms. They even created user-friendly guidance on how to reach out to FEMA for much needed support. And as the immediate concerns of COVID diminished, POTC’s Community Oasis remained a welcoming space offering healing and support for those experiencing harm.

To strengthen this work, POTC’s peacebuilders also participated in an advanced Violence Interrupter training, which focused on de-escalation and conflict resolution strategies, trauma-informed response, and the principles of restorative justice. “The biggest thing is to keep people at the table, talking. To see each other, and ourselves, as human,” shared Aziz. Through the training, peacebuilders gained critical skills to keep community members in dialogue and help them build out “peace plans” together.