In the midst of what seemed to be a never-ending cycle of increasing violence in Miami-Dade County, Metro Miami Action Plan Trust pushed a legislative initiative to create Florida's first institution teaching nonviolence management based on the philosophy and practice of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On April 2, 1993, Florida legislators responded to MMAP's longing request and unanimously passed a bill creating a state wide institution called the Florida Martin Luther King, Jr. Institute for Nonviolence, only the second of its kind in the United States. Several people witnessed this community milestone including the widow of slain civil rights leader Ms.Coretta Scott-King, King Institute Executive Director John T. Jones, Jr. and bill sponsors former State Representative James Bush III and Senator Daryl Jones.

Through the collaborative effort of the Miami-Dade community, elected officials and MMAP Trust, Florida residents were given a governmental response to nonviolent social change through the enactment of a comprehensive institution focusing on research, education and training to develop and encourage nonviolence management for social conflict.

Since its inception in January 1994, the King Institute, located in Miami-Dade County, has spread its message of Kingian Nonviolence methodology throughout the State of Florida. The message is governed by six principles and six steps and taught by 150 certified Kingian practitioners.

By conducting hundreds of seminars, nearly 7,000 people including 4,000 within Miami-Dade County have successfully completed training. From troubled youths to chief executive officers, the methodology has helped participants improve negotiation skills, defuse tense situations and encourage sensitivity and social understanding -- dealing with the causes of violence before having to deal with its symptoms.

Florida's King Institute is the only establishment in operation which conducts nonviolence training on a full time basis. The dedicated practitioners are from an array of ethnic backgrounds and represent numerous governmental entities:

• Metro-Miami Action Plan Trust
• Community Action Agency
• Miami-Dade Police Department
• City of Miami Police Department
• Miami-Dade Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
• Dade County Public Schools
• Dade County Public Schools Police Department
• City of Opa-locka Police Department
• Coral Gables Police Department
• South Miami Police Department
• Florida Attorney General Office
• Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department
• Department of Juvenile Justice
• Grace C. Abrams Peace Education Foundation