Page 14 - The Indian EYE 081823

The Indian Eye
COMMUNITY OP-ED AUGUST 18, 2023 14

HOW WE MAKE

NEW YORK CITY SAFER

How can we stop the violence before it happens on our streets? With the help of community members, our task force

landed on seven key strategies. These include: trauma-informed care, housing, employment, benefits access, improving
the relationship between the police and the community, community vitality, and early interventions to protect our youth

ERIC ADAMS

s mayor, it is my sacred duty to
keep New Yorkers safe. I cam-
Apaigned on making New York
City a safer place to live, work, and
raise a family, and now, after a little
over a year and a half in office, we
continue to see the results. Shootings
are down an incredible 27% through
the first 7-months of this year, and, so Bringing down crime and gun violence doesn’t happen overnight. It takes precision policing combined with prevention-based strategies that look
far this year, we have removed almost
4,000 illegal guns from our streets. at the different causes of violence and take steps to address them (File photo)
Murder, robberies, and burglaries are
all down, it is safer to ride on the sub- communities, supporting our young ventions to protect our youth. It takes precision policing combined
way, and hate crimes have declined. people, and mobilizing every level Those investments are going to- with prevention-based strategies that
This is the result of intervention– of city government to make preven- wards programs with a proven-success
targeted, precision policing, but also a tion-based approaches to public safe- rate, such as $22.5 million towards the look at the different causes of vio-
lence and take steps to address them.
prevention-based approach to tackle ty their top priority. “Work, Learn, Grow” program that
Our men and women in uniform
the root causes of crime. The loss of Ending gun violence requires offers year-round employment op- are tireless in their efforts to make
even a single life due to violence is a more than enforcement. It requires portunities, and $6.6 million for job New York City a better place to live
tragedy. So, while we can all acknowl- attention and investment, and the training for out of school and out of and work. Our many agencies, social
edge the progress made, we must also blueprint is built on a community de- work youth. workers, and violence interrupters
keep working proactively in order to velopment approach that focuses on We are also addressing the need help defuse tensions and create op-
remain the safest big city in America. preventive measures and long-term for quality affordable housing, career portunities for New Yorkers to live
That is where our recently re- strategies. training, and are involving violence
leased Blueprint for Community We sought to answer a key ques- interrupters, who can defuse violence meaningful lives outside the web of
violence. The numbers confirm that
Safety comes in. The blueprint — de- tion: How can we stop the violence be- before it starts. we are making great progress. But the
veloped by our Gun Violence Preven- fore it happens on our streets? With We are starting our efforts by work of public safety never finishes,
tion Task Force with support from the help of community members, our targeting six police precincts in the and we must dam up every river that
Governor Kathy Hochul — is a $485 task force landed on seven key strate- Bronx and Brooklyn, neighborhoods leads to the sea of violence. With this
million-dollar plan that will double gies. These include: trauma-informed where we have seen the highest rates plan, we can create a stronger, safer,
down on our public safety efforts. It care, housing, employment, benefits of gun violence, and we will expand to more livable city for all.
will take a 360-degree, holistic ap- access, improving the relationship be- other neighborhoods over time.
proach to further reduce gun violence tween the police and the community, Bringing down crime and gun Eric Adams is
by investing in our most impacted community vitality, and early inter- violence doesn’t happen overnight. the Mayor of New York City, NY

www.TheIndianEYE.com