National Night Out is a community-police awareness-raising event in the United States, held the first Tuesday of August (Texas celebrates on the first Tuesday in October).

History

The event has been held annually since 1984, and is sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch in the United States.Block, Deborah (August 3, 2016).

. ''VOA News''. National Night Out began simply with neighbors turning on their porch lights and sitting in front of their homes. The first National Night Out involved 2.5 million residents across 400 communities in 23 states; National Night Out 2016 involved 38 million residents in 16,000 communities across the United States.

Activities

The event is meant to increase awareness about police programs in communities, such as

drug prevention Substance abuse prevention, also known as drug abuse prevention, is a process that attempts to prevent the onset of substance use or limit the development of problems associated with using psychoactive substances. Prevention efforts may focus on ...

town watch A neighborhood watch or neighbourhood watch (see spelling differences), also called a crime watch or neighbourhood crime watch, is an organized group of civilians Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members ...

neighborhood watch A neighborhood watch or neighbourhood watch (see spelling differences), also called a crime watch or neighbourhood crime watch, is an organized group of civilians devoted to crime and vandalism prevention within a neighborhood. The aim of neig ...

, and other anti-

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

efforts. The events are typically organized by block watches, nonprofit organizations, companies, and police departments. These events can be as simple as backyard cookouts or as complex as full-blown festivals like the one on the west side of

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. The South Central Hilltop Block Watch in Columbus organizes one of the largest, which includes live music, food, and entertainment. In

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

, neighborhoods such as Sycamore Senior Village have cookouts, live music, dancing, and visits by police officers, fire fighters, and paramedics with safety demonstrations, exhibits, and projects for all residents.Tash, Debra (July 14, 2016).
Ventura PD National Night Out
. ''Citizens Journal'' (Ventura County, California). Retrieved June 13, 2017.

References

External links

* {{URL, https://natw.org, National Night Out, main web site August observances Civil awareness days Civil crime prevention Holidays and observances by scheduling (nth weekday of the month) Law enforcement in the United States Law enforcement in Canada October observances Recurring events established in 1984 Tuesday observances