Bill creates grants to fund community-based strategies proven to be successful at improving public safety, reducing violence

Washington, D.C. — Giffords, the gun safety organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, praised the House of Representatives’ passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and views it as a major step forward in long overdue police reform.

A major component of the bill is the authorization of new grant funding for community-based organizations to implement strategies such as violence interruption and hospital-based violence intervention, evidence-based initiatives championed by Giffords at both the federal and state levels that are proven to reduce gun violence.

Research and case studies have shown that through a combination of low-cost, community-oriented intervention programs and much-needed firearms policy reforms, gun violence rates in underserved communities can be dramatically reduced in as little as two years.

Earlier this year, Giffords joined with 20 American mayors to send a letter to leadership in the Senate and House of Representatives calling for federal aid to cities battling community gun violence during the coronavirus pandemic.

Giffords Law Center’s A Case Study in Hope: Lessons From Oakland’s Remarkable Reduction in Gun Violence details Oakland’s successful citywide gun violence reduction strategy and why these programs are more important than ever.