New York City’s mayor Eric Adams announced the release of a “Blueprint to End Gun Violence” today, listing several policy proposals which he intends to implement in an effort to diminish the city’s alarming gun violence. The blueprint emphasizes the mayor’s urgent prioritization of gun violence as an issue in need of immediate attention.
Accompanying this latest blueprint, the mayor’s prepared statement on the matter reads as follows:
“In my three weeks as your mayor, I have been with an officer who was shot in the head as he slept in his own car. I have met with the mother of a 19-year-old girl who was killed as she worked the night shift in East Harlem. I have been at the bedside of a police officer who was shot by a 16-year-old as they struggled for a gun. I have seen a toddler’s bloodstained pink jacket in the street. I have held hands and prayed with her mother. That 11-month-old baby was shot in the head by a gunman who didn’t care where those bullets went.”
Mayor Adams’ plan addresses the gun violence issue with strategies aimed both at prevention and intervention. To achieve this, the mayor is calling on New York State and the federal government to partner with him and assist him in his mission to reduce the gun violence plague affecting the city.
In addition to his time-sensitive proposed policies for immediate action, Mayor Adams is dedicated to addressing the core of the problem in the long run. The roots of gun violence will be tackled by growing the city’s economic growth opportunities, improving the quality of education for local children, and providing further support and access for mental health.
Commenting on the current state of gun violence in the city, Mayor Adams stressed the issue’s prevalence and called on all New Yorkers to take a stand and join him in making a difference. “We pray for all the victims of violence and their families who are suffering, but we are going to do more than pray — we’re going to turn our pain into purpose. Public safety is my administration’s highest priority, which is why we will remove guns from our streets, protect our communities, and create a safe, prosperous and just city for all New Yorkers,” said Mayor Adams.
