(As if a pandemic wasnât enough), 2020 gun violence killed nearly 20,000 Americans. It was the most violent year in 2 decades. Still, violent crime in general dropped dramatically in the last 30 years. No one knows why, but numerous studies show that violence is way down in areas that have Community Intervention Programs (CIPs). Most people donât know about these programs because when we talk about gun violence in America, the discussion immediately becomes about gun control. And talking about CIPs is highly uncomfortable. Talking about them will probably get you called racist. It will make you very unpopular, so most politicians avoid the subject entirely.
âThe assault rifle ban and universal background checks will do little to decrease the bulk of shooting incidents: suicides and community violence.â Thatâs from The Guardian, and it turns out they were right.
CIPs donât stop mass shootings. Though mass shootings get wall to wall media coverage, per The Guardian fewer than âbetween 1 and 3 percent of American gun homicide victims die in what we generally call âmass shootings.ââ
Per Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, gun violence in America is driven largely by day-to-day shootings that occur in under-served communities of color.
And thatâs the uncomfortable part. Interpersonal shootings mostly involve young men and teenagers of color shooting other young men and teenagers of color, particularly blacks. Black men constitute only 6% of the US population and account for more than 50% of all gun homicides each year (also per Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence). For young black men, the interpersonal murder rate is nearly 20 times the national average. But addressing Black-on-Black crime is considered racist. And NOT addressing it is racist. (Welcome to American political discourse.)
CIPs, aka Group Violence Intervention or Focused Deterrence, are groups comprised of respected community members, faith leaders, social service workers, researchers, and law enforcement. These groups are relatively small but they work because, for example, in Richmond, Calif., one of the most dangerous cities in the US, less than 30 individuals were responsible for 70% of the cityâs gun crimes (in 2009). Richmond's rather small CIP members were able to contact these individuals directly and provide assistance, services, and counseling. Their goal is to teach offenders that if they stop the violence, the community will help them turn their lives around, and if not, then theyâll get harsh law enforcement attention at the request of the community.
A CIP in Boston earned the title âThe Boston Miracleâ in 1996 after Bostonâs youth homicide rate fell by 63% due solely to work done by their CIP. But you probably never heard of it. If you did, you probably lived in Boston at the time.
The CIP in Stockton, Calif is credited for a 42% reduction in gun crime, Indianapolis, 34%, Lowell, Mass, 44%. It also worked in Chicago, Cincinnati, New Haven and New Orleans. In more than 1400 studies, CIPs had the strongest, most consistently effective anti-violence effects in America.
Many hospitals have similar programs, because when youâre lying in a hospital bed with a gang-related gunshot wound, you're probably rethinking your life choices.
Also notable is that CIPs save youth detention centers and jails $750K to $1.5 million annually. But the 2 barriers to implementing more CIPs is politics and money; thanks in large part to the media, communities have trust issues with law enforcement, and politicians are *uncomfortable* talking about the statistics, so money that could fund more CIPs goes to promoting gun control and school security instead.
