EVERYTOWN COMMUNITY SAFETY FUND AWARDS $100,000 SUPPORT GRANT TO YOUTH ALIVE! TO STRENGTHEN YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND HOSPITAL-BASED VIOLENCE INTERVENTION IN OAKLAND

Everytown Reinvests In Oakland’s Pioneering CVI Organization Amid DOJ Cuts

OAKLAND, Cal. — Today, the Everytown Community Safety Fund, a program of Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, announced that Youth ALIVE! will receive a $100,000 support grant over two years to sustain and expand its nationally recognized youth development and hospital-based violence intervention work.

Youth ALIVE! uses a youth development and mentorship model, coupled with hospital-based intervention, to educate and empower young leaders, interrupt street violence, and support survivors and families in healing from trauma. The organization helped establish the nation’s first hospital-based violence intervention program in the late 90s, setting a model now replicated nationwide.

“We’re proud to re-invest in Youth ALIVE! – a true pioneer in the CVI field whose hospital-based and youth mentorship models have consistently proven effective at reducing violence,” said Michael-Sean Spence, managing director of Community Safety Initiatives at Everytown and creator of the Community Safety Fund. “It’s essential to ensure trailblazing partners like Youth ALIVE! can continue leading the way.”

“Oaklanders deserve care, safety, and opportunity, and our work ensures they have all of that,” said Joseph Griffin, DrPH, Executive Director, Youth ALIVE! “Everytown’s continued support means we can keep empowering youth, supporting survivors, and preventing violence, even as federal dollars disappear. This support could not be coming at a more crucial time. Violence is on a downward trend here in Oakland. Everytown is helping us maintain that momentum.”

The announcement comes as the Department of Justice has slashed funding for public safety grants, challenging community organizations to sustain their lifesaving efforts with declining support. At the same time, many cities that have invested in community violence intervention (CVI) are seeing gun homicides decline, a powerful testament to the effectiveness of programs like Youth Alive!. Research shows that community-level violence prevention programs can contribute to drops in crime. Youth Alive!, one of the nation’s pioneering CVI organizations, is among those directly impacted by the DOJ cuts.

Since its launch in 2019, the Everytown Community Safety Fund has invested more than $15.7 million in grants to 142 CVI organizations across 72 U.S. cities, in addition to technical support and capacity building resources.  This year, Everytown is awarding $2.67 million in grants nationwide, including renewed support for long-standing partners like the Youth Alive. More about the Everytown Community Safety fund and their grantees can be found here.

About Youth ALIVE!

Youth ALIVE! is an Oakland-based organization dedicated to preventing youth violence and fostering healing in communities impacted by trauma. Through hospital-based violence intervention, mentorship, leadership development, and survivor support, Youth ALIVE! has pioneered strategies that are now used nationwide. Learn more at https://www.youthalive.org/.