Public Health Models to Prevent Violence from Cities Around the U.S

A new framework for addressing urban violence is emerging that recognizes the critical role of public health and prevention and recognizes that violence cannot be addressed exclusively as a criminal justice issue after-the-fact. This session will present models from cities that are transcending the traditional borders of a criminal justice approach by shifting toward a public health approach to violence prevention, including multi-sectoral collaboration, community action and structural changes. Successful efforts from various cities around the U.S. will be highlighted, including community engagement, federal partnerships, creative fundraising and resource allocation, and data-informed program and policy development. Examples will focus on the infrastructure needs to address violence prevention and how these efforts can inform health policy.

Examples will be shared and their strengths highlighted against an emerging model of violence prevention in cities, called the UNITY RoadMap. UNITY developed the RoadMap in response to a city assessment of a sampling of cities for comprehensive, data-driven efforts to prevent or reduce youth violence. The RoadMap has since been refined by representatives from cities around the country.

UNITY (Urban Networks to Increase Thriving Youth through violence prevention) is a national initiative sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and The California Wellness Foundation. UNITY was designed to support cities in their violence prevention efforts that expand the borders of a law enforcement approach to include effective public health approach which spans multiple stakeholders and offers prevention-oriented sustainable solutions.