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Residents of The Atlanta Project (TAP) have teamed with volunteers and civic, business, and service organizations to address the issue of violence in their neighborhoods. All are partners in TAP Into Peace, a long-term campaign to address this critical issue.

On April 30, volunteers went door-to-door in 15 TAP clusters to ask residents to sign a peace pledge and to get their ideas on how to stop violence. The effort was one of several weekend activities organized by TAP, The Carter Center's grass-roots program to address issues associated with urban poverty. Approximately 5,000 volunteers helped prepare and carry out the campaign.

For many residents, the campaign was an opportunity to confront a problem that often keeps them behind locked doors.

"Some wanted to get involved in tackling violence in our neighborhoods but didn't know how," said Vada Hurnton, a volunteer and Crim Cluster resident. "A lot of them are afraid, but they do want peace."

Ms. Hurnton recalled one resident who invited volunteers into his home to pray for peace. Others wanted to talk about politics, gun control, and drugs.

"The residents wouldn't let us go," said Jane Smith, TAP program administrator. "People were so eager to talk, to share their ideas. We learned that there's a real need for this kind of interaction for community organizing."

Former President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter were among the volunteers who found residents eager to help but fearful of leaving their homes.

"I visited only one neighborhood where residents felt safe to go out in the daytime," Mrs. Carter said. "That's because there is a recreation center for young people and a police station in the heart of the community."

President Carter began the day with a message to volunteers at the Leila Valley Community Center in the Fulton Cluster. "We don't have to live in fear for our lives," he said as the Carters joined city and county officials in urging residents to reclaim their communities.

"The only thing it takes for evil to exist is for good people to sit back and do nothing," said Michael Langford, director of Atlanta's Department of Community Affairs and coordinator of the city's peace initiative, Operation Take Back.

During the walk-through, volunteers targeted several thousand households to share information packets encouraging a peaceful lifestyle. TAP's partners provided leaflets on conflict resolution, drug prevention, good parenting skills, gun safety, and other programs.

Residents also were asked how they would make their neighborhood a safer place. The "opinionaire" showed that 48 percent of residents surveyed had four major concerns: weak enforcement of anti-drug laws, a need for greater police presence, a need for neighbor-hood watch programs, and a need for community-building programs.

Results are being shared with TAP's corporate and university partners, Atlanta city government, metro Atlanta county governments, the state of Georgia, social service providers, and federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In addition, TAP will use the results as a guide to develop initiatives aimed at stopping violence.

The TAP Into Peace walk-through was part of a three-day kickoff to a year-long campaign, conceived by the TAP Cluster Health Committee in response to residents' concerns.

The kickoff began with a youth rally at the Martin Luther King Jr. Com-munity Center. Among the 300 teen-agers attending was 17-year-old Marquette Malone, a rising senior at Fulton High School.

"I'd like to see us move toward a seminar series involving people my own age talking about the things that concern us," Ms. Malone said.

The weekend ended with a "Solidarity for Peace" march and candlelight vigil for TAP volunteers, staff, and residents. The Shriners of Prince Hall and 100 Black Men served as marshals.

For Vivian Laster, TAP Into Peace was a positive step toward mobilizing neighbors to help stop violence.

"I really do think the people and police need to get to know each other," said Ms. Laster, who volunteered at Leila Valley, where she has lived for several months. "A lot of good is going to come out of this."

Atlanta City Hall, 100 Black Men, the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, The Southern Christian Leadership Con-ference, and The Carter Center's Interfaith Health Program were among those joining TAP Into Peace. Other collaborators included WSB-TV, SouthTrust Bank, Armed Forces Command, Fulton County Youth Services, the American Red Cross, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.