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UNITY Updates

UNITY Co-Chair to Brief Congress

Join UNITY Co-Chair Deborah Prothrow-Stith and other experts on the Hill for a briefing on the connections between violence and chronic disease. People are less likely to use local parks or walk to school when they don’t feel safe, for example, and violence reduces investments in communities, such as by grocery stores. Held in partnership with Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Barbara Lee, this congressional briefing on February 2 raises the profile of violence as a public health issue. Spread the word! Forward the invitation to colleagues and friends, and read Addressing the Intersection: Preventing Violence and Promoting Health Eating and Active Living to learn about how preventing violence is a key aspect of healthy communities.

California’s Attorney General Weighs In on Preventing Violence

Kamala Harris, the new California attorney general, detailed her Smart on Crime approach during a UNITY webinar when she was San Francisco’s district attorney. Read City Voices and Perspectives—Kamala Harris for insight into the perspective of California’s chief law officer. Harris spoke with Larry Cohen, executive director of Prevention Institute, about innovative city strategies to reduce recidivism and keep kids in school.

CeaseFire Documentary Film Premieres

The groundbreaking work of UNITY partner CeaseFire is the focus of “The Interrupters,” a documentary that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this week. “The Interrupters” shares the stories of three violence interrupters working to stop the shooting in Chicago neighborhoods. An extensive scientific evaluation by the U.S. Department of Justice showed that CeaseFire effectively reduced shootings and killings by up to 73 percent, and the CeaseFire model has been successfully replicated in cities across the country.  Watch “The Interrupters” trailer and look for a screening in your city.

Endorse the UNITY  Policy Platform

The endorsement campaign for the UNITY Policy Platform is gaining momentum! Join groups such as the Family Violence Prevention Fund, the American Public Health Association, the National Association of County & City Health Officials (NACCHO), Youth ALIVE! and the CeaseFire project in Chicago. These organizations agree that cities working to prevent violence need support for local efforts to be successful and sustainable. Cities can’t do this alone; endorse the UNITY Policy Platform today.


UNITY is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as part of the CDC's national youth violence prevention initiative, Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere (STRYVE), and in part by The California Wellness Foundation. Created in 1992 as an independent, private foundation, TCWF’s mission is to improve the health of the people of California by making grants for health promotion, wellness, education and disease prevention programs. For more information, visit www.preventioninstitute.org/unity.

"Violence is not the problem of one neighborhood or group, and the response and solutions are not the responsibility of one sector of the community or of one agency, professional group, or business. Coming together and owning this problem and the solutions are central."

-Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Harvard School of Public Health

UNITY is an initiative of Prevention Institute
Visit our website: www.preventioninstitute.org
Prevention Institute 221 Oak Street Oakland, CA 94607
t 510.444.7738 | email: prevent@preventioninstitute.org