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Cook County awards $25 million in grants to address gun violence
Thirty-nine grants were handed out on Tuesday with the goal of making Cook County safer.
COOK COUNTY - Thirty-nine grants were handed out on Tuesday with the goal of making Cook County safer.
Twenty-five million dollars in grants will go to 70 organizations that are doing violence prevention in Cook County.
The goal is to use the funding to curb the surge in gun violence in Cook County, after a surge during the pandemic.
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The funds are coming from the Illinois Department of Human Services’ Office of Firearm Prevention, through the state's Re-imagined Public Safety Act.
"Violence prevention programs can help individuals with risk factors avoid involvement in incidents in the first place. The stabilizing impact extends beyond individuals to families and entire communities. That's the potential impact that culturally responsive, community riven, evidence informed programming can have when we provide adequate funding and support," said Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Board President.
Gun violence has become the leading cause of death for children and young adults in the United States.