A conflict mediator by training, Erricka Bridgeford is working to stop the surge of violence in Baltimore, which now ranks among the most dangerous cities in America. She the organizer of the Baltimore Ceasefire, a grassroots campaign against gun violence with the slogan “Nobody kill anybody,” which is building community-wide momentum around keeping the peace. The initiative holds “ceasefire weekends” four times a year, and near-nightly gatherings at locations of homicides to turn them into sacred ground so victims don’t become just another forgotten number. Erricka Bridgeford was trained as a mediator in September of 2001. By 2005, she became the Director of Training for Community Mediation Maryland.
In this capacity, she continues to provide training to the 18 community mediation centers in Maryland,
as well as to state agencies and organizations, and for national conferences. Because of her continuous commitment to healing violence, in 2015, Erricka was one of two people in Maryland to be given the award for Outstanding Volunteer Contribution to Victim’s Services, by the Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention. In 2017, she co-organized the Baltimore Ceasefire.