Addressing Teen Violence in Dallas
At a recent Sunday morning service at Abundant Life African Methodist Episcopal Church in South Dallas, kids in the congregation, from 8 to 15 years old, stepped forward as leaders. Before congregants arrived, they rehearsed hymns, harmonizing with each other and the church’s pianist and drummer. Dressed in white robes, the kids lit candles to begin service, read the call to worship and invocation, read scripture and welcomed newcomers to the church.
Teen violence can be difficult to address. Grassroots nonprofits are at the heart of the work to curb violent crime among children and teens and sustain the progress year-over-year.
The Abundant Life African Methodist Episcopal Church youth choir performs during a youth-led service, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025, in Dallas.
Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer
Empowering Kids to Take Greater Roles
Empowering kids to take greater roles in the church is one way local faith leaders are trying to chip away at youth violence in Dallas. Of the homicides recorded in Dallas last year, 48% involved a victim younger than 30. The age range of 18 to 29 represented 38.4% of all of Dallas’ homicides — the most of any age group.
Many of these homicides, including 40% of the homicides involving kids between the ages of 10 to 17, were concentrated in South Dallas, where churches Abundant Life and True Lee Missionary Baptist are located.
True Lee’s Pastor Donald Parish
True Lee’s pastor, Donald Parish, said when a teen is killed, he tries to come alongside grieving families by offering food and prayer. While this helps comfort the family during a traumatic time, he said he is more focused on proactive measures to the problem of teen violence. He said he accomplishes this through building relationships in the community and making sure people know his church is always open, just as it has been for almost 90 years.
“What I try to do specifically is I try to make sure that all of my local schools that are closely affiliated to my church know me,” Parish said. “They know me as a partner.”
Addressing the Issue
Parish helped bring 600 men to a “Breakfast for Dads” event at Dade Middle School in 2017 after putting out a message on Facebook seeking volunteers to come for the kids who may not have had fathers present in their lives. That evolved into his mentorship organization, A Steady Hand, which pairs kids with mentors to help them with resume writing, college applications, summer jobs and more.
Pastor Don Parish poses for a photograph at True Lee Missionary Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, on May 22, 2025.
Jason Janik / Special Contributor
The Goal of A Steady Hand
The goal is to connect young men with positive male role models. He said that is especially important in areas like South Dallas that often get negative news coverage due to the instances of violence.
“So that’s why we’re active and involved in schools, trying to change that narrative, give them a different picture of what success looks like,” Parish said.
Systemic Issues
While pastors are trying to find ways to address this problem in their communities, systemic issues around racism and poverty can make the problem ever-present.
For Michael Waters, pastor of Abundant Life, he sees youth violence as a result of systemic problems. Waters pointed out the connection between poverty and crime, as he said poverty limits opportunities and creates food insecurity and environmental concerns like pollution.
“When you begin to pull back the layers, you recognize that it’s not so much communities of violence, but communities who have had violence done to them,” Waters said. “That violence has been historical and continuous in nature.”
