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Caribbean L 16 ife, Aug. 9-15, 2019 Q
Brownsville gets nearly
$9M after mass shooting
By Nelson A. King
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio,
City Council Speaker Corey
Johnson and Council Members Inez
Barron and Alicka Ampry-Samuel
announced on Tuesday nearly $9 million
in new funding in support of the
Brownsville, Brooklyn community
in the wake of the mass shooting on
July 27 that resulted in 11 injuries
and one fatality during the annual
Old Timers Day community event.
The new funding will bolster and
expand services supported by the
Mayor’s Office to Prevent Gun Violence
and the Mayor’s Action Plan for
Neighborhood Safety (MAP) in the
wake of the violence.
This includes $5.2 million for the
renovation of the Brownsville Houses
Community Center, a MAP site, and
$140,000 for new New York Police
Department (NYPD) security cameras
and public lighting around the
Brownsville Playground facility, the
Mayor’s Office said.
It said lighting will be fully
installed by December 2019. The
NYPD has installed two cameras and
will make additional upgrades by the
end of the year.
“Our hearts ache for Brownsville;
but this community will be
defined by resilience, not tragedy,”
said Mayor de Blasio. “These programs
will build on our commitment
to end the epidemic of gun violence
and lend much needed support to the
local leaders and activists who work
to bring positive, enduring change to
the Brownsville community each and
every day.”
Johnson said the mass shooting in
Brownsville was “a tragedy.”
“As a City, we must do everything
we can to stop this kind of violence
from ever happening in our communities,”
he said. “I am proud today
to announce this funding to support
gun violence prevention programs,
increase safety, and heal the wounds
left by the horrific and senseless
shooting.”
Barron said she was “pleased to
acknowledge and support the Mayor’s
additional funding to the Brownsville
community, “in particular: 1)
the increased funding for the prevention
of gun violence by trained
persons from the community who
are acknowledged as experienced and
effective in dispelling violence; 2)
funding to the Department of Heath
acknowledging this type of violence
as a health crisis; 3) opportunities to
train youth to engage in peacekeeping
and anti-bullying efforts; and 4)
additional staffing at the Brownsville
Recreational Center, which will
increase programming activities and
improve the ratio of adult to youth
interaction.”
She said this initiative is “a muchneeded
response to conditions in the
neighborhood that are manifestations
of longstanding circumstances
and systemic oppression, which
have negatively impacted the social
dynamics of our community.
“We look forward to further
improvements, initiatives and job
opportunities to help restore our
neighborhoods,” Barron said.
Ampry-Samuel said Brownsville
“has had its share of challenges over
the years but continued to remain
resilient through it all.
“The mass shooting on July 27th
shook us to our core and was evidence
of the need for funding resources,”
she said. “I’m glad the voices of
the community are being heard and
those doing the work will get the
support needed on the ground; while
partnering with city agencies.”
On top of $5.2 million in capital
funds, the Mayor’s Office said an
additional $3.24 million will go to
build on the effective anti-violence
and community-building efforts
already integrated into the Brownsville
community.
These include: $1 million in annual
funding to expand the Mayor’s Office
to Prevent Gun Violence’s successful
Crisis Management System violence
disruption program in Brownsville’s
73rd Precinct; $1 million to
increase the capacity of the Department
of Health’s Brooklyn Neighborhood
Health Action Center (NHAC)
to plan, prepare, and respond to incidents
and systemic crises, including
community violence, extreme
weather, and environmental hazards,
such as fires and building collapses;
and $590,000 for Brownsville Neighborhood
YouthStat, a youth centered
version of MAP’s NeighborhoodStat,
which trains young people in community
organizing and engagement,
peacemaking, and crime prevention
through environmental design, and
a suite of mental health and trauma
response skills.
“The investments directly in the
Brownsville community will provide
much needed city resources in helping
the community heal from recent
violence, while continuing to build
on the foundation laid by residents’
long-standing efforts of creating a
safer Brownsville for all,” the Mayor’s
Office said.
First organized in 1963, it said
the annual Old Timers Day event
provides the Brownsville community
with “a special opportunity to celebrate
the contributions and impact
of its elders, while inviting neighbors
of all ages to partake in a fun, familyfriendly
annual summer event.”
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