AVP Massachusetts offers the Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) in Massachusetts communities and prisons.  AVP is an international volunteer program that enables participants to deal with potentially violent situations in new and creative ways.

AVP was introduced in Massachusetts in 1988. Workshops have been held in a dozen state correctional facilities and one federal facility. Nine of these programs are currently active and we are working to start community workshops to go upstream in the river of violence.

AVP started Green Haven Prison in New York in 1975, and now also operates in communities, schools, colleges and conflict situations worldwide.

We don’t lecture or preach.  Our experiential workshops use the shared experiences of participants, interactive exercises, games and role plays to examine the ways in which we respond to situations where injustice, prejudice, frustration, and anger can lead to aggressive behavior and violence.