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Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund Launches New Online Portal for City Gun Violence Prevention

10.30.2019

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NEW YORK — Today, Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund announced the launch of CityGRIP, an interactive online platform that will help mayors, city officials, reporters and advocates explore gun violence prevention strategies tailored to a city’s particular makeup and gun violence issues. The site draws on two years of interviews with city officials about their uses of data in local public safety efforts, as well as extensive research on the effectiveness of a wide range of community-based gun violence prevention strategies.

“With this portal, we’re helping city leaders tackle the gun violence crisis our national government has shamefully failed to address,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, the country’s largest gun violence prevention organization. “Decision-makers can use CityGRIP to build evidence-based strategies to keep their community safe.”

“In nearly 100 communities across the country, Moms Demand Action volunteers are supporting community partners and city leaders as they work to end the devastating daily gun violence that never gets the attention it deserves,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. “CityGRIP is a new, essential tool to help volunteers, community leaders and local elected officials identify solutions to address gun violence in communities where the nation’s gun violence crisis is experienced most acutely.”

“Ending the senseless epidemic of gun violence and mass shootings demands that we use every resource at our disposal — from youth development programs to meaningful legislation,” said Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles. “CityGRIP plays an important part in this work by providing mayors with a data-informed blueprint that will help us fight gun violence in our communities.”

“CityGRIP is a powerful platform that can help cities develop gun violence reduction strategies that are data-informed and evidence-based with support from cities that have implemented these programs,” said William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh. “For mayors, learning from the experiences of other cities is enormously helpful as we try to deliver the best results for our residents.” 

“Cities of every size now have access to a clearinghouse of gun violence prevention programs that are tailored to address the needs of their community,” said Karen Freeman-Wilson, Mayor of Gary, Indiana and President of the National League of Cities. “This is a tool that can foster communication between cities across the country that are working to end gun violence.”

“Gun violence is a multi-faceted issue for a community,” said Greg Fischer, Mayor of Louisville, Kentucky and Vice President of the US Conference of Mayors. “CityGRIP provides a thorough and systematic structure to reduce gun violence.”CityGRIP helps cities create a custom blueprint for gun violence reduction, with strategies including: 

  • Community-based violence intervention programs: Intervention programs like Cure Violence reduce gunshot victimizations in the neighborhoods most affected by gun violence. In the South Bronx, the Cure Violence program was associated with a 37 percent decline in gun injuries and a 63 percent decline in shooting victimizations.
  • Improving public spaces: Urban communities can adopt strategies to reduce gun violence by reshaping public spaces that facilitate gun crime. In Philadelphia, a project to transform vacant lots into green spaces were associated with a 29% reduction in gun violence in surrounding areas. 
  • Hospital-based intervention programs: These programs connect gun violence survivors who are at risk of being reinjured or violent retaliation with mental health counseling, education, employment counseling, and other services. In San Francisco, participants in a hospital-based violence intervention program were 2 times less likely to be readmitted for a violent injury.

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