Community Violence Intervention Advocates Call for Sustained City Funding, Amidst a Historic Decline in Gun Violence

Community Violence Intervention (CVI) leaders, advocates, and public officials gathered at City Hall prior to the Chicago City Council’s meeting on Thursday, September 25, 2025, in a call for a $50 million allocation for CVI programming in the upcoming FY26 city budget. 

Joined by City of Chicago alderpersons and CVI advocates Michael Rodriguez, Daniel LaSpata, Ronnie Mosley, Byron Sigcho-Lopez, and Jeylu Gutierrez, CVI organizations including Metropolitan Peace Initiatives (MPI) and Acclivus celebrated the strides and progress made in reducing violence throughout the city, while acknowledging the need for sustained funding to reach more Chicagoans.

“In Chicago, we know that community solutions are the best solutions to gun violence,” said Rodriguez. “Community Violence Intervention organizations are the catalyst to enhance our public safety strategy. The organizations partner with the City, the Police Department and have deep roots in our communities to understand the causes of violence and respond quickly to de-escalate volatile situations. Quite frankly, our great Community Violence Intervention organizations save lives every day in Chicago.”

Domonique McCord, Chief Program Officer at MPI, emphasized the importance of CVI on communities at highest risk. “This past summer was the least violent Chicago has seen in over 60 years. That’s not an accident – it’s the result of community violence intervention being part of Chicago’s overall public safety strategy.

“When we invest in peacekeepers, outreach workers, and trauma services, we’re investing in the stability of our neighborhoods, the dignity of our people, and the future of our city.

“Community Violence Intervention is not just the right thing to do from a public safety standpoint – it’s the smart thing to do fiscally. Every dollar we invest in prevention, saves taxpayers many more dollars down the line in policing, incarceration, and medical costs.”

Currently, the City of Chicago has funded CVI through the remainder of the FY25 fiscal year. During the following city council meeting, Alderman Lamont Robinson addressed a crowd of representatives from CVI organizations across the city and urged his fellow City Council members to support their peacekeeping efforts.

“As we come into this budget season, we have to make sure that we find the resources to continue this fight,” said Robinson. “We don’t need troops in the city of Chicago. We need more funding for the men and women that do the work alongside of our police department, to keep our city safe.”