'How do I fight back?': UFC's Bobby Green organizing walk for violent crime awareness

Bobby Green's younger brother was shot and killed in May. Last month, his older brother was shot three times.

Green, a UFC lightweight fighter, has been personally affected multiple times in the last year by the rise of gun violence in the Inland Empire, just east of the Los Angeles metropolitan area in California. And he wants to do something about it.

"How do I fight back?" Green told FOX Sports. "My brother was just killed and my life hasn't been the same since he left. My life has been in shambles. Now, my big brother gets hit."

Green isn't looking for revenge. He's searching for change. On Sunday, Green will organize an event to raise awareness about crime and gun violence in San Bernardino. Green and what he hopes will be thousands of others will walk from Seccombe Lake Park in the city to the police station and then back. The event has been dubbed "The Green Mile."

Taco stands will be set up during the walk and Green has obtained a water sponsorship. Kids attending will be able to get their faces painted. "The Green Mile" has been approved by San Bernardino police and will also have the support of local churches. Green is encouraging everyone to stay away from wearing gang colors like blue or red and don a green shirt.

"We want to let the city know we're not standing for this anymore," Green said.

Flier for "The Green Mile."

The event will run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Green said he'll walk the path back and forth as many times as possible, greeting people and doing interviews with media. He feels like it's his duty as a professional athlete to be a role model for the youth growing up in his area.

"These guys don't have anything to look up to," Green said. "Who do they look up to? They see the oldest person around them and it's an 18-year-old kid and he's in a gang and they say, 'I want to be like him.'"

Violence has increased in San Bernardino and surrounding cities in the Inland Empire over the last few years. San Bernardino filed for bankruptcy in 2012 and that same year the homicide rate increased by 50 percent, according to a New York Times report. The 2013 violent crime rate was also on pace to exceed what it was the previous year, according to the FBI's preliminary semiannual uniform crime report. The full 2013 statistics have not been released yet.

"I don’t get why people think it's cool to take a life," Green said. "People think this s**t is cool. They think, 'Oh, I'm a real mean, I'm a gangster, because I killed somebody.' People have their wires crossed. I gotta stand up and do something."

Green, who has won eight straight bouts, has a big fight coming up against Edson Barboza at UFC Fight Night on FOX Sports 1 on Nov. 8 in Austin, Texas. He's currently ranked No. 7 among UFC lightweight contenders and Barboza is No. 12. There is plenty for Green to be thinking about, but right now his focus is on his city and trying to make a difference.

"I'm gonna get killed," Green said. "I understand that. I'm gonna die. But I better stand for something before I do."