Halimah Basheer Carries Forward Her Father’s Legacy at BUILD’s Youthful Warriors Workshop in South L.A

Photos By: Qia Lanique

LOS ANGELES — At a time when young people across Los Angeles are searching for direction, purpose, and community, one organization is doubling down on a message that leadership is learned, discipline is practiced, and every generation has a responsibility to prepare the next.

That vision was on full display Saturday June 27th as The BUILD Program and the Professional Community Intervention Training Institute (PCITI) welcomed youth, families, mentors, educators, and community leaders to the inaugural BUILDing Youthful Warriors Workshop at the organization’s South Los Angeles headquarters.

Designed for youth ages 12 to 27, BUILDing Youthful Warriors introduced participants to principles rooted in community violence intervention, leadership development, conflict resolution, personal accountability, and service—equipping young people with practical tools to become leaders within their homes, schools, and neighborhoods.

For many in attendance, the workshop also served as a tribute to Dr. Aquil Basheer’s lifelong commitment to community-based public safety. Following the recent passing of BUILD founder Dr. Basheer, one of the nation’s most respected pioneers in community violence intervention, the organization is entering a new era under the leadership of his daughter, Halimah Basheer.

The organization is committed to ensuring Dr. Basheer’s vision continues to serve communities long into the future. Earlier this year, BUILD formally announced Halimah Basheer as Executive Director, describing her role as carrying forward the methodology, partnerships, and standards established by her father while expanding the organization’s national impact.

His work emphasized that sustainable public safety begins within communities themselves—through trusted relationships, accountability, leadership, and culturally competent intervention rather than enforcement alone. BUILD continues to train community intervention professionals nationwide using the framework he established.

“We are teaching the youth about emotional intelligence, community safety, community mentorship and engagement. We also teach the youth about violent situations they may have and about healing. Teaching them about discipline and how to speak up and advocate,” Halimah Basheer shared.

Rather than stepping away from her father’s life’s work, Halimah has stepped directly into it. For more than five decades, Dr. Basheer worked to redefine violence intervention as a professional discipline, developing a practitioner-based methodology that has influenced organizations and municipalities across the country.

Read More: https://buildprogram.org/prevention-intervention-work/

The Youthful Warriors initiative reflects both continuity and evolution—preserving the principles Dr. Basheer spent decades developing while expanding the organization’s investment in the next generation of young leaders.

Throughout the afternoon, participants were challenged to think critically about leadership, discipline, emotional intelligence, responsibility, decision-making, and the importance of serving something larger than themselves.

Unlike many youth programs that respond after violence occurs, BUILDing Youthful Warriors focuses on prevention. The new initiative builds upon the nationally recognized PCITI methodology that has trained community intervention practitioners in more than 100 cities throughout the United States.

The curriculum introduces foundational concepts from BUILD-PCITI’s professional training model, adapted specifically for youth development and leadership cultivation. By exposing young people early to these principles, the organization hopes to strengthen community resilience before intervention ever becomes necessary.

Mentors encouraged young attendees to view themselves not simply as future leaders, but as present-day stakeholders capable of influencing their peers and communities today.

Now, under Halimah Basheer’s leadership, that philosophy is being introduced to an even younger audience. By investing in youth today, BUILD is planting seeds for the community leaders, violence intervention practitioners, mentors, educators, and advocates Los Angeles will depend on tomorrow.

As conversations surrounding youth violence, mental health, public safety, and community investment continue across Los Angeles, organizations like BUILD are demonstrating that prevention requires more than policy—it requires people.

Programs such as BUILDing Youthful Warriors provide young Angelenos with spaces to develop confidence, discipline, purpose, and meaningful relationships with adults committed to their success.

Read More: https://voiceofblackla.com/los-angeles-library-2026-june-jubilee-brings-black-excellence/

In many ways, the workshop represented exactly what Dr. Aquil Basheer spent 50 years advocating for which is communities preparing their own future leaders before crisis defines them.

With Halimah Basheer now guiding the organization into its next chapter, BUILD is not simply preserving Dr. Basheer’s legacy—it is expanding it. That legacy is already taking root in a new generation of Youthful Warriors in South Los Angeles ready to serve their communities with courage, discipline, and purpose.

Read More: https://voiceofblackla.com/los-angeles-library-2026-june-jubilee-brings-black-excellence/