Jamaal Bowman Addresses NYC Recent Surge in Gun Violence

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[NYC Gun Violence]
Bowman: “We have to talk about moving resources to the communities that are disproportionately being impacted by senseless violence. I’m not talking about funding more policing.”
Photo: Twitter

The senseless killings of the innocent, like Davell Gardner, must be stopped by community reawakening to the need for community self-policing.

This past weekend, New York City experienced yet another surge in gun violence with shootings going up 277% compared to the same week from last year.

The violent incidents included 22 shootings and 28 victims this weekend alone, including the killing of a 1-year-old boy who was shot while sitting in his stroller near a playground in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

In response, Jamaal Bowman released this statement:

“A 1-year-old boy was shot dead Sunday night in Brooklyn.

“We have to stop everything and come together at the table to get serious about solving the senseless violence in our communities and finally centering the lives of our children and our babies who are dying in the streets.

“On a personal note as a father, I hate that when I’m driving with my children in the car, that I have to think about a stray bullet coming in and killing my child. I hate it. But I’m not blaming the people in these neighborhoods. The problem is systemic. Our communities have been neglected for decades, failed by government at every level. It’s not just about those who are pulling the triggers, but the elected leaders who have yet to take on the ongoing problems of systemic injustice.

“We have to talk about moving resources to the communities that are disproportionately being impacted by senseless violence. I’m not talking about funding more policing — if we’re going to break the cycle of violence, our response can’t be centered on law enforcement, since we’ve seen how that only exacerbates the problem. I’m talking about directing resources to help the community leaders who have been doing the work on the ground.

“We’re currently living through the biggest economic crisis since the Great Depression, and dealing with the collective stress and trauma that comes with it. The fear of a pandemic, the fear of our own police who are supposed to keep us safe, the fear of evictions and of food insecurity – that collective trauma is contributing to the senseless violence in our communities.

“That’s why I’m calling on the Mayor, the Governor, the City Council, Members of Congress, community leaders, and those who have been victims of senseless violence to come together at the table to talk about saving the lives of children and the most vulnerable. And public health needs to be centered at the beginning, middle, and end of the conversation.”

About Jamaal Bowman

Jamaal Bowman has been an educator and advocate for public schools for over 20 years and most recently served as principal for the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action (CASA), a public middle school he founded in 2009 in the Baychester neighborhood of The Bronx. Dr. Bowman ran in New York’s 16th Congressional District’s Democratic Primary, rejecting all corporate PAC and lobbyist contributions, and is the likely nominee. He is a life-long New Yorker who now lives in Yonkers with his wife and their three kids.

 

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