‘No sirens. No gunshots’: Big city nonprofit builds bridges between youth, police as trust in cops struggles

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Trust in cops is plummeting in Baltimore. How this group is trying to restore it

As trust in police remains low across the nation, a Baltimore nonprofit, Project Pneuma, aims to bridge the divide between law enforcement and young boys. 

BALTIMORE – A Baltimore organization has been working to mend the broken relationships between boys and police officers as Americans' confidence in law enforcement diminishes. 

Project Pneuma organizes events with Baltimore police trainees and boys like fitness competitions and academy visits. The nonprofit, founded in 2014, hopes the activities will help police better understand who the boys are and where they come from while allowing the kids to feel more comfortable approaching law enforcement.

"They're building trust," Damion Cooper, founder and CEO of Project Pneuma, told Fox News. While the police officers are "in the academy, they are learning about the young boys and the boys learn about them and their backgrounds." 

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"And when they graduate, trust is built," Cooper said. "Trust is made. So when things do happen, they know one another."

Americans' confidence in the police plummeted after George Floyd's death. According to a February Washington Post-ABC poll, 39% of the 1,000 adults surveyed said they were confident the police were properly trained to use excessive force, down 5% from 2021 and 15% from the first survey in 2014. 

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A Baltimore police officer trainee and two boys play outside during an April 19 event at the Under Armour headquarters.  (Megan Myers/Fox News Digital)

Cooper, during his own upbringing and in his former role as director of neighborhood relations with the Baltimore City Council, saw the tension between the community and police. 

"There was always this us against them mentality," Cooper said "I got tired of it. I was like, ‘you know what? Let me be part of solution.’" 

Cooper was awarded a grant that he used to launch Project Pneuma as a program that would bolster boys' mental health and help prevent them from joining violent gangs. The group's founder chose boys between grades four to eight after consulting with therapists and other experts who identified the age group and gender as particularly vulnerable. 

Last week, Project Pneuma hosted a fitness challenge between nearly 20 Baltimore police officer trainees and 45 boys in the program at the Under Armour headquarters.

"Oftentimes, these young men don't get these experiences," Cooper said. "There will be no sirens. There will be no gunshots." 

"And they will get a chance to enjoy life like boys and kids are supposed to do," Cooper continued. 

In addition to connecting the boys with police officers, the group also meets multiple times a week and engages in activities like yoga meant to help the kids process their emotions and have fun in a positive environment. It also provides therapists for the boys to talk with.

A Project Pneuma member meditates to a south bath alongside Baltimore cops and other young boys in the community. (Megan Myers/Fox News Digital.)

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"When you dissolve the bias and you just see [police officers] as people, it's much easier to get to know officers … and what unique challenges they may face," said Candace King, who's son participates in the Project Pneuma programs. "And for kids, it's easier to see officers as, ‘oh, this person, I know this person.’" 

"They're going to see them on the street one day, and they're going to be able to go to them, say, 'hey, that's officer so-and-so,'" King continued. 

Baltimore's cops and boys compete in a fitness challenge together as they build their relationships to combat high crime.  (Megan Myers/Fox News Digital )

King said the mutual trust among the boys and police could help reduce crime as teen violence surges across Charm City. 

"This is changing lives just across the board," she told Fox News.

Since 2014, there's been an increase in the number of Baltimore kids getting shot and killed, according to the Baltimore Police Department. This year, five children under 18 have been fatally shot and another 23 have been injured by gunfire in the city.

By building relationships between the boys and the cops, Cooper hopes the boys will cooperate with police officers in the event of a crime and that the officers will respect the boys and not treat them as potential criminals. 

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"I don't want the fate that I've seen for some of the kids in Baltimore and some of the scenes that I've been on to happen to any of these kids in Project Pneuma," Officer Rhaei Brown said. 

Brown encouraged more officers to participate to keep kids away from joining violent groups and turning to bad behaviors like using drugs. 

"So I make it a point to be here," Brown said. "I try to be consistent and build these relationships with these boys because it will make a difference." 

To hear more about Project Pneuma, click here.

Jon Brown contributed to this report.