ROCKFORD On the heels of a deadly year in which shootings in the city more than doubled, faith leaders are urging officials to put money toward curbing gun violence.
Live Free Illinois, an organization whose mission is to end gun violence and mass incarceration, held a news conference Friday afternoon at Spirit of Truth Church, 828 First Ave. The faith-based organization is on a statewide campaign called Fund Peace to urge city and state officials to spend a portion of its federal American Rescue Plan money on gun violence prevention programs.
Within the next two weeks, the city of Rockford is expected to receive its first installment of $54 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan. The organization is asking the city to allocate $3 million to fund its program over the next two years.
ROCKFORD One of the leading causes of death of young Black and Hispanic men in Illinois and throughout the country is gun violence.
Willette Benford, a member of LIVE FREE Illinois, which works to end gun violence and mass incarceration, wants to do something about it. She and other organization members are embarking on a statewide campaign urging state and local officials to invest money from President Joe Biden s American Rescue Plan into community-centered gun violence prevention programs.
Benford will join LIVE FREE Illinois-Rockford chapter members and local faith leaders at 3 p.m. Friday at the Spirit of Truth Church, 828 First Ave., where they will discuss how the gun violence prevention programs will make the city safer without increasing the presence of police.