D.A. Bragg Announces Increased Funding Opportunity For Summer Youth Gun Violence Prevention

Grants Aim to Build on Double-Digit Shooting Decreases in Manhattan

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced new and additional funding for Manhattan community-based organizations to work to proactively prevent youth gun violence for the fourth consecutive summer. Building on the initiative's success, the Office is investing up to $300,000 - up from $200,000 in previous years - in community-based organizations to provide stipends for young New Yorkers, allowing them to earn money while participating in meaningful summer programs such as youth-led community events, self-expression creative arts projects, and career readiness internships.

A minimum of ten organizations are expected to receive funding to provide youth gun violence prevention stipends to New Yorkers aged 14 to 24 years old. Funding will be awarded to community-based organizations that employ people who have experienced gun violence and provide hyperlocal programming in neighborhoods most affected by gun violence, including Washington Heights/Inwood, Harlem/East Harlem, and the Lower East Side, as well as NYCHA developments including Douglas, Amsterdam, and Wise Towers. The Request for Proposals is available here.

"As someone who grew up in Harlem myself, I know firsthand the importance of keeping young people engaged and busy during the summer months. I am thrilled to announce up to $300,000 in funding for summer youth gun violence prevention, building on the success of the past three years of this initiative," said District Attorney Bragg. "Driving down gun violence is my top priority, and with shootings down 48 percent since I took office, we are building on that progress. Prevention initiatives are one key way we're doing that, alongside focused prosecutions in areas of concentrated violence and traditional law enforcement methods. I urge organizations big and small to team up and apply for these grants."

The Office is enhancing the long-running summer youth gun violence prevention initiative created by District Attorney Bragg in several ways, including:

• Increasing the Office's investment from $200,000 to $300,000,
• Incentivizing organizations to submit joint proposals building on each other's strengths,
• Streamlining programming categories to zero in on the most effective types of interventions,
• And expanding the length of contracts with additional planning periods to recruit the most appropriate participants and to strengthen the quality of programming.

In Summer 2025, programs should focus on one of three programming categories that have proven successful in previous summers:

• Youth-led community events and activations that foster meaningful interactions between neighbors, such as planning a basketball tournament or improving a local garden.
• Youth-led self-expression projects using creative arts or technology to engage neighbors and local leaders, such as a podcast, movie, or mural.
• Career-readiness internships that promote personal and professional growth.

To foster dynamic and innovative partnerships, the Office is offering two application tracks: organizations can apply as an individual entity to receive $25,000 or can join another organization and apply to receive $60,000. The Office is encouraging applicants to partner and leverage each other's strengths. For instance, a large organization with sizeable staff and infrastructure may partner with a smaller organization that has deep ties to the community and trusted relationships with young people.

Award recipients must demonstrate the ability to work with the D.A.'s Office to identify and successfully engage young people who are at the highest risk of committing or experiencing gun violence. Awards will be made to organizations that have a presence in and deep ties to areas that experience disproportionate rates of gun violence. Award recipients must employ staff with relevant lived experience and provide hyperlocal services to young people currently living in these areas:

• Washington Heights/Inwood
• Harlem/East Harlem
• The Lower East Side
• And in or around NYCHA developments including Douglas, Amsterdam, and Wise Towers.

Proposals are due January 14, 2025, and award recipients will be announced in Spring 2025. Planning and recruitment will take place in May and June, with programming running from July 1^st through August 29^th.

The Manhattan D.A.'s Office is providing these awards through its Criminal Justice Investment Initiative ("CJII"), which was created using millions seized in the Office's investigations against major banks.

###