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Public Safety

Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez's approach to public safety centers investing in our most vulnerable communities to break cycles of harm. For example, in 2022, she secured nearly $400,000 in funding for Jacobi Hospital’s Stand Up to Violence (SUV) Program. The funding will add a mental health services component to the SUV Program, which already deploys outreach workers to respond to shootings to prevent retaliation, assists family members of those who have been injured or killed, and mentors at-risk youth on educational and job opportunities. The SUV program has been shown to decrease recurrence of violence by more than 50%. The Congresswoman also voted for the Bipartisan Gun Safety Bill that passed in the summer of 2022, which included language to go after those who act as organizers of gun trafficking operations and deal or sell trafficked firearms. For more on the Congresswoman’s work on this issue, please read on below.