BUFFALO (WBEN) - Congressman Brian Higgins and Mayor Byron Brown, along with members of the Buffalo Peacemakers, announced $5 million in funding to address violence prevention in the community.
"Residents in the City of Buffalo have been witness to a terrible spike in gun violence over the last several weeks, and that violence threatens to worsen without immediate and decisive action," said Higgins and a Tuesday morning press conference. "Community violence intervention programs work well, and particularly when those involved have credibility both with law enforcement and the community at large."
The money is coming from the American Rescue Plan. On June 24, the Biden Administration released guidance clarifying that State Local Fiscal Recovery Funds made available by Congress may be used for Community Violence Intervention programs.
"I'm proud to allocate resources that will be well spent to address people who have been victims of violence, to support organizations that mentor young people, that train young people, that act as supervisors in the Mayor's Summer Employment Program, that end violent conflicts in our community," Brown added.
The action comes in response to the surge of deadly shootings in Buffalo neighborhoods. On July 4th weekend alone, 13 separate shooting incidents resulted in more than 20 victims, including a 3-year-old boy who was killed while watching fireworks.
Last year, the city experienced a 90% increase in fatal and non-fatal shootings, totaling 355 victims.
"Ideally, we want to increase the number of individuals that are available to reduce the conflict, but we want to make sure that they're trained," said Peacemakers Coordinator Pastor James Giles. "A lot of dollars are going to training because we believe that we'll be effective.
As violence escalates, you can continue with the same effort," he continued. "We must escalate the effort against violence."
