Albany, NY – Today, Members of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Legislative Caucus hosted a new episode of “Caucus Corner'' for the 2024 legislative session. Caucus Corner is an audio series initiated by members to discuss and analyze major Caucus priorities from its annual People’s Budget with policy experts and community-based organizations from across the state. Additionally, Caucus members are able to increase support for various initiatives and campaigns.

Listen to the program here on Spotify or on Youtube.

In the newest episode of the Caucus Corner, panelists discussed the prevalence of gun violence in several communities, which has claimed the lives of too many young black men in New York State. Studies show that the leading cause of death for black men between the ages of 15 to 44 is homicide, and 86% of those incidents involved a firearm. Action must be taken, both on the ground and through legislation, to stop the bloodshed.

“We’ve seen it right here in New York State. When we make deep investments in our communities, we see the incidents of gun violence go down,” said Chair of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislative Caucus, Assemblymember Michaelle Solages. “At the end of the day, we need to tackle the root causes of violence in our communities, which requires these deep investments to make the change we want to see to stop this senseless violence.”

“Education is very important, and so is monitoring what your kids are doing and making sure they are engaged in productive activities so they don't think about doing things that can bring them down and cause harm to others… Focusing on anti-gun violence activities, such as after school programs, anti-gang programs, and programs such as gun buyback programs will help steer our children in the right direction.” said Senator Robert Jackson.

“The core solution to addressing the issue of gun violence, which is a symptom, is addressing poverty. Gun violence is a symptom of poverty. And when you have unequal access to resources and basic necessities, it requires you to enter an economy that may not be safe… the next root cause that comes from this is anger & addressing people's inability to resolve conflict… conflict is a natural part of human existence. It's how we resolve that conflict that defines us as individuals and defines us as people. If our answer to conflict is to pick up a firearm, we have already lost.” said Assembly Member Khaleel Anderson.

“Neighbors in Action is very boots to the ground, we’re out interrupting bouts of violence through mediation, but we're also some of the harder to access such as counseling group counseling, financial counseling and promoting the idea of economic mobility out of poverty. We’re teaching young people and community members how to make money. But we're not just teaching them how to make money, but how to utilize it in a way that will benefit your life & to become constructive versus being destructive.” said Anthony Rowe, Project Director at Neighbors in Action.