Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
4 THE PEOPLE INC.
4 THE PEOPLE. Founded in 2014, 4 the People Inc. was an Iowa Nonprofit Corporation that focused on education, civic engagement, economic well-being, safety and health. (1)
The objectives of the organization were: (2)
• Public and Private Safety - Find ways to train to properly handle, explore and create positive and supportive individual/group cultural interaction. - Raise awareness about public safety.
• Community Resources - Increase awareness of and ways of connecting with organizations and specialized programs that are available and the work that these organizations do to help those in need.
• Education - Lessen the achievement gap of students of diversity, raise test scores, improve student attitudes toward school, improve attendance, impact graduation rates and scholarship achievement. - Promote and increase parent engagement by presenting parents with the tools and skills to be a positive influence in the education of children. - Create segues and platforms for administrators, educators, and other school personnel to better educate and connect with students of diverse populations.
• Workforce and Economic Development - Adult training and education to identify and build marketable skills, and provide support and encouragement in the job application process. - Work with public and private entities in recruiting for diversity and retention of diverse employment. - Support members of diverse communities in their pursuit of entrepreneurship.
In 2016, the organization promoted Safe Passage Dubuque. As envisioned, military veterans would patrol at key points in "high risk" areas to provide safe routes for students in order to protect children and teens from violence.
The objective was to provide positive adult presence while building trust and engaging with the students they served in a collaborative effort bringing veterans, the City of Dubuque Police Department, businesses and community members together to create safer, healthier, neighborhood environments. (3)
In June 2016 the organization along with the Dubuque Human Rights Commission and the U. S. Department of Justice sponsored a Hate Crimes/Bias Incident Forum in the wake of two cross-burnings in the community. (4)
In response to the racial equality protests across the United States in the spring of 2020, the “SOLIDARITY” mural was completed on July 2 on the Main Street side of Five Flags Center. In the mural measuring 28 feet high and 105 feet wide, artist Shelby Fry envisioned showed support for the Black Lives Matter movement and other segments of the community and to promote unity. Some of the symbols used as letters are meant to include those with disabilities (the wheelchair symbol), brain health issues (the first “i,” which is a semicolon, which are commonly associated with brain health), the LGBTQ community (the rainbow “D”) and transgendered individuals (the symbol serving as the “y”).
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Source:
1. "4 the People," Online: https://www.dbqfoundation.org/donors/giving-center/4-people-inc
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Barton, Thomas J. "Justice Department Joins Forum," Telegraph Herald, May 20, 2016, p. 1.