FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 8, 2022
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez and New Yorkers
Against Gun Violence Host Anti-Gun Violence Youth Summit
Thursday Event Will Educate High Schoolers and Provide Opportunity to
Speak Up and Offer Solutions They’d Want to See in Their Communities
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, together with New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, today announced that his Office and the advocacy organization will host an Anti-Gun Violence Youth Summit in Bedford-Stuyvesant’s Restoration Plaza. The event will take place on Thursday, June 9, 2022, beginning at 9 a.m. and will include presentations from the DA and his staff, discussion groups, and guided tours.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “Teaching our young people about the harms of gun violence and how to avoid it is critical to keeping communities healthy and safe. As part of our all-out effort to reduce shootings in Brooklyn this summer – which includes aggressive enforcement, gun buybacks, legislative advocacy and much more – we will host a unique summit aimed at educating and engaging our youth. They are not just our future, but also a force that can help prevent violence in our neighborhoods right here and now. My thanks to New Yorkers Against Gun Violence for partnering with us and for bringing their effective educational program to Bed-Stuy.”
Rebecca Fischer, Executive Director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, said, “Young people in Brooklyn and across this city are impacted every day by the trauma of gun violence in their communities. Our NYAGV educators see the impact this crisis is having on New York’s Black and Brown youth, and we need leaders who help to create safe and supportive platforms for our students. Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez recognizes that to stop the shootings and prevent gun violence, we need to provide young people with safe and empowering spaces to talk about the violence they are experiencing and to be a part of finding solutions. We are proud to partner with the Brooklyn DA’s Office on this outstanding Youth Summit and look forward to working together on more prevention initiatives in the future.”
The District Attorney said that the Anti-Gun Violence Youth Summit will educate high school students on root causes of violence, teach ways to address underlying trauma, and provide them with the opportunity to brainstorm solutions they would want to see in their communities. The event will take place in Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street, beginning at 9 a.m. on Thursday, when public high schools are closed for Chancellor’s Day.
After registration and opening remarks, the students will hear from the District Attorney and a supervising detective investigator at the Brooklyn DA’s Office. They will then break into two discussion workshops: Personal Identity: How Identity Unifies and Divides Us and The Double Public Health Crisis: Covid-19 and Gun Violence.
The discussions will be facilitated by instructors from NYAGV who teach in the ReACTION program, a year-long curriculum that is taught in numerous schools that are disproportionally affected by gun violence and has proven to shift attitudes about guns, gun violence, and civic engagement.
Following a lunch break at noon, students will have the option of joining a guided tour in a Brooklyn courthouse or a free tour of the Brooklyn Museum, if they wish. A MetroCard, a stipend and swag bag will be provided for all participants.
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