GOOD MORNING, CONSORTIUM MEMBERS AND FRIENDS OF THE CONSORTIUM,

We are heartbroken and angry by the continuous injustices caused by systemic racism and police brutality. We know racism is a public health crisis, police brutality is a public health crisis, police killing Black people is a pandemic, and gun violence does discriminate based on race and ethnicity.

We also know that we all have a role to play in dismantling systemic racism. As the authors of this editorial state so well, “Science has a racism problem. Scientists are problem solvers. Let’s get to it.” Thus, we hope you will join us in our efforts to unlearn racism and advance anti-racism, both personally and professionally. Research and its applications in promoting health equity and violence prevention is more important than ever, and we have more work to do. We know many of you are deeply committed to advancing evidence-based policy for gun violence prevention and we hope we can all work together to improve the data and research related to race, racism, and violence; consciously increase the diversity of the research and academic fields we represent; and enhance the ways in which research is implemented in policy and practice for a more equitable, safe, and welcoming society for all.

Please read on for new resources and news highlights from this month, followed by our monthly research recap.

New Initiatives:

• We are happy to share the introduction of Sustain Equity Group, a new independent initiative led by Kayla Hicks, whom many of you know as the Ed Fund’s long-time Director of African American and Community Outreach and consistent contributor to Consortium convenings. Sustain Equity Group will focus on building power by investing in the development of Black women in the violence prevention space. Learn more at www.sustainequity.org.
• The Initiative for Better Gun Violence Reporting is creating a Center for Gun Violence Reporting. According to the announcement, the new center will “improve reporting on community gun violence by collaborating with journalists and local organizations to raise voices from neighborhoods and broaden the range of expert sources quoted in stories – de-emphasizing the predominant law enforcement narrative.”

New Resources:

• The Ed Fund’s PreventFirearmSuicide.com website released county-level state maps for firearm suicide rates across the country.
• The Center for Gun Policy and Research at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health published a new report, Reducing Violence and Building Trust: Data to Guide Gun Law Enforcement of Gun Laws in Baltimore, by Daniel Webster, Cassandra Crifasi, Rebecca Williams, Marisa Doll Booty, and Shani Buggs.
  • Media mentions of the report include:
    • Breaking the cycle of gun violence in Baltimore starts with constitutional policing, The Baltimore Sun.
    • New Report on Enforcement of Gun Laws in Baltimore Finds More Focused Approached Could Reduce Violence, Improve Community Relationships with City Police, Newswise.
• The Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs released a new resource, Lethal Means Counseling: Recommendations for Providers.
• Thomas Abt, Richard Rosenfeld, and Ernesto Lopez published a new report, COVID-19 and Homicide.

Upcoming Events:

• Registration is now open for the annual Firearm Safety Among Children and Teens (FACTS) Consortium Symposium, which will be held virtually on September 23, 2020. Attendance is free.

Media Mentions:

• Jurist op-ed by Kami Chavis and Josh Horwitz, Improving Community Safety Means Addressing Police Violence as a Public Health Problem.
• New York Times op-ed by David Studdert, Matthew Miller, and Garen Wintemute, Coronavirus Could Make America’s Gun Problem Even Deadlier.
• Shannon Frattaroli quoted in the 74 Million, Raising the ‘Red Flag’ in School.
• Daniel Webster quoted in the Baltimore Sun, Call to ‘defund’ police in Baltimore and elsewhere raises the question: What would that look like?
• Garen Wintemute mentioned in the Sacramento Bee, Gun owners four times more likely to die by suicide than non-owners, Stanford-led study says.