A comprehensive new action plan aims to reshape the approach to gun violence prevention in the U.S., emphasizing community-based solutions over traditional law enforcement responses. Spearheaded by 60 experts from fields such as medicine and criminology, the report identifies gun violence as a symptom of deeper structural issues like poverty and opportunity gaps, with over 800,000 deaths attributed to gun violence in the last 25 years.
The authors advocate for initiatives that address socioeconomic inequalities and invest in preventive programs like Chicago’s Create Real Economic Destiny, which has demonstrated a 73% reduction in violent crime among participants. This report highlights the importance of collective action and robust state gun laws in creating safer communities, presenting a unique opportunity to shift the narrative from inevitability to proactive prevention.
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