Senator
Jeff Klein announced that he has secured $250,000
dollars in funding for Operation S.N.U.G. (guns spelled backwards), an
initiative designed to reduce violence in communities in New York that
experience disproportionately high rates of shootings and killings.
Senator Klein made the announcement at the 49th Precinct’s
National Night Out Against Crime and has committed to working with local
officials and community leaders throughout the Bronx.
Senator Klein said,
“Gang violence has devastated our neighborhoods in the Bronx, and has
far too often resulted in the deaths of our young men and women. We
have to take a comprehensive, aggressive approach to combat this.
That’s why I’m proud to announce that I’ve secured $250,000 for the
Bronx’s Operation S.N.U.G. program in order to drive the anti-gang
violence movement in New York, providing a brighter for our families,
and most importantly, our youth.”
Previous
funding for Operation S.N.U.G. has been awarded to various communities
with high cases of gang violence in New York such as Brooklyn, Queens,
and Yonkers. This year will mark the first year that S.N.U.G. funding
has been granted to the Bronx thanks to the advocacy of Senator Klein.
S.N.U.G. is a
comprehensive response to gun violence that works with community based
organizations and experts who specialize in outreach to high risk
individuals education and job opportunities. Experts will be hired to
keep the pulse of each community for the purpose of intervening in
violence before it escalates.
Operation
S.N.U.G uses a data driven model to determine what messaging would be
most effective for each community. S.N.U.G. will also operate during
hours when violence is most likely to occur, such as late nights and
early mornings. The
initiative is based on the successful “CeaseFire Chicago” program,
whose model produced a 67% reduction in shootings its first year, and
helped between 85-99% of high risk clients find jobs, drug treatment,
and education. The annual murder rate in Chicago as of 2010 became the
lowest it had ever been in 45 years, spurring a series of other
successful programs across the nation in cities such as Baltimore,
Kansas City, and New Orleans. By securing funding for S.N.U.G., the
Bronx will be on the path to significant reductions of violence in its’
most vulnerable areas, enhancing the future safety and quality for our
communities, neighborhoods, families, and youth.
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