Reducing Violence News Archive

With shootings on the rise in cities across the U.S., our staff spoke with Brian Lehrer about the reasons young people carry guns, based on their report "Guns, Safety, and the Edge of Adulthood in New York City." Lehrer interviews Research Director, Rachel Swaner Deputy Research Director Elise White, and community-based Research Coordinator Basaime Spate, about the year-long study in NYC.

In an effort to bring the community together, over a dozen mothers, grandmothers, and other family members are creating more green space at their NYCHA development. Thanks to funding from the Mayor’s Action Plan and working along with Neighborhood Safety Initiatives, the “Harlem Garden Ladies” are expanding and adding more green space to the Polo Grounds Towers in Harlem. If you were to ask them, these women say "they are planting seeds and then watching the good in the community grow."

Kellen Khelefu and Davonte Dudley joined a special episode of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee to talk about our anti-violence program Save our Streets. Viewing gun violence through the lens of a public health crisis, violence interrupters leverage their relationships in neighborhoods affected by gun violence to de-escalate and stop violence before it starts.

A special edition of Full Frontal With Samantha Bee airs on TBS, and Collider has an exclusive clip that teases the show’s take on gun control in the USA. Titled Full Frontal Wants To Take Your Guns, the special will use all of Samantha Bee’s charisma to discuss the polemic proposals surrounding gun reform. Samantha Bee talks to some of the people fighting for gun reform in the USA, like Shannon Watts from Moms Demand Action, Kellen Khelefu from the Center for Court Innovation, and Davonte Dudley from Save Our Streets.  

New York City kicked off its Safe Summer NYC program Friday with the first of a series of anti-gun violence resource fairs, this one at the Polo Grounds Towers in Washington Heights. To mitigate the recent uptick in gun violence, the Mayor's Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety is partnering with public housing developments to engage city residents and deter gun violence with increased safety awareness.

"A recovery for all of us means every New Yorker is safe and feels safe in their neighborhood,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. "Safe Summer NYC is the comprehensive roadmap to end gun violence and bring our city back stronger than ever.” Learn more about how this program is investing in neighborhoods.

Citing our new research on the impact of one year of state-wide bail reform in New York City, Gothamist reports criminal justice reform is not likely behind the city's spike in shootings.

An anti-violence fair was held Friday in Harlem in the same city housing complex where a little boy was killed in March. The event had the feel of a block party but with crucial information about resources for the community.

Brooklyn organizations, including our Save Our Streets team, came together to flood their communities with resources and access to quality programming to help combat a recent uptick in violence in the neighborhood and surrounding area.

“Each of these safety interventions was created by residents for residents as innovative solutions to addressing community safety,” says Danielle Brutus of the Center for Court Innovation on The Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice virtual summit. Bringing together NYCHA resident leaders, local government officials, and policymakers to discuss how safety interventions can influence policy, 400 registered attendees heard panels and discussions on the legacy of the stop-and-frisk policy and “Physical Space as an Innovative Design and Policy Opportunity.”