Community Violence Intervention (CVI), an approach to quelling crime and supporting people who may be victims of, or likely to commit, violent crime (or both), emerged in America's urban neighborhoods. It is now practiced across rural America, too, sometimes in forms that vary distinctly from city-based CVI. LISC's Safety + Justice team, in tandem with Rural LISC, invest in capacity building for these groups working round the clock to make their communities safer, and to save lives.

By Mona Mangat, LISC Vice President, Safety & Justice

For the second year in a row, the Department of Justice, in partnership with LISC, brought together hundreds of community violence intervention practitioners from across the country to share their experiences and insights on the front lines of gun violence and trauma. Their stories and wisdom are reshaping narratives about victimhood and perpetrators, and helping implement solutions to create safer, healthier communities.

LISC, with support from the Department of Justice, has been investing intensively in the work and wellbeing of frontline community violence intervention (CVI) workers. A new report on CVI practitioner trauma and strategies for their wellbeing, and a panel at a recent CVI conference, hammer home the urgency of informed, well-resourced support for these critical community servants.

New Report: A Close Look at the Reality of Community Violence Interrupters

Dr. Kathryn Bocanegra and Dr. Shani Buggs, eminent researchers and experts on the work of community violence intervention, have published, together with LISC, Supporting the Frontline Through Community Healing: Advancing Science on Violence Intervention Outreach and Trauma Exposure. The study, focused on safety efforts in Kansas City, MO, is a deeply researched and compassionate look at the trauma CVI workers confront every day and how to support the field so that practitioners “are protected from the same harms they work to prevent.”

By Matt Josephs, Senior Vice President of Policy

LISC’s Matt Josephs reflects on this year’s State of the Union speech, taking particular note of the president’s comments about affordable housing, child care, climate solutions and community safety. "Taken as a whole, the speech offered a strong and hopeful statement of purpose,” Josephs said, adding that it will take sustained leadership at all levels "to translate promising ideas into on-the-ground progress for families and communities.”

As part of its partnership with the Department of Justice, LISC s supports practitioners and policy makers with best practices and overcoming challenges facing community violence intervention (CVI) work in American communities. An article from the National Criminal Justice Association highlights the many voices represented during a recent webinar for nearly 1,000 attendees, led by on-the-ground experts in violence intervention, researchers and DOJ leaders. The webinar is now part of a robust online resource center hosted by LISC and the DOJ’s Community Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative.