Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams and Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a pilot program to prevent gun violence in New York City under the Advance Peace model.
The City will conduct outreach in areas with elevated levels of gun violence to identify youth and pair them with mentors who provide them with tangible goals for the next 18 months, such as a drivers’ license or a GED.
Participants who achieve their goals receive a monetary stipend. The Public Advocate first proposed introducing this strategy in the summer of 2020.
A peer-reviewed study of the implementation of Advance Peace in Sacramento, Calif. demonstrates a 27% reduction in gun violence in the program’s catchment area over 2 years. Statistical analysis shows that this reduction was a direct causation, rather than a correlation.