In a historic level of collaboration, community violence intervention (CVI) groups, the Partnership for Safe and Peaceful Communities philanthropic coalition, business leaders, and government entities unveiled a $400 million initiative to expand CVI programs over the next decade to significantly reduce gun violence in Chicago. Beginning in 2024, Scaling Community Violence Intervention for a Safer Chicago (SC2) will scale CVI programs in up to three neighborhoods to start, bringing on additional communities as funding and organizational capacities allow.
In this model, CVI organizations will coordinate their efforts to proactively identify potential street conflicts, mediate disputes, and provide a menu of services to participants such as street outreach, life coaching, trauma treatment, educational opportunities, and job training. Within the next five years, efforts aim to serve at least half of the estimated 20,000 Chicagoans who are at the highest risk of shooting or being shot and, within 10 years, to serve 75 percent of people at the highest risk. SC2’s goal through this work is to reduce shootings and homicides by half within five years and by 75 percent in a decade.
