Amo, Colleagues, Advocates Launch Congressional Community Safety Caucus

WASHINGTON, DC - YESTERDAY, Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI),Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12), Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Congressman Henry "Hank" Johnson (GA-04), Congressman Morgan McGarvey (KY-03), and Congresswoman LaMonica McIver (NJ-10) launched the first-ever Congressional Community Safety Caucus to uplift holistic investments into people and communities that break cycles of harm. The Members of Congress will serve as co-chairs of the new caucus.

"Every American deserves to live in a safe community free of violence and full of opportunity," said Congressman Amo (D-RI). "The Community Safety Caucus's push for commonsense policies that emphasize community violence intervention, getting guns off the street, enhancing public infrastructure, and investing in mental health care will ensure communities have the tools they need to succeed. Americans need real policy solutions, not political theater. I'm proud to work with my colleagues to provide a vision of what safe, thriving communities look like."

"We launched the first-ever Congressional Community Safety Caucus to fight for safe schools, affordable housing, quality health care, and a justice system that actually delivers justice," said Congresswoman Lee (D-PA). "Real community safety means making holistic invests in people to root out the systemic challenges that perpetuate cycles of harm. Our communities deserve more than poverty and trauma as the status quo. This caucus is about uplifting solutions rooted in care, prevention, and equity, and led by the people most impacted. I'm grateful to my colleagues and the coalition of advocates who made this caucus possible."

"Our country has too many examples of violence perpetrated against the many to fulfill the promise of safety and law and order for the few. The Trump Administration's weaponizing of the idea of safety to erode our constitutional boundaries and abuse military power in our cities makes us all less safe," said Congresswoman Ramirez (D-IL). "That's why I am proud to join my colleague Congresswoman Lee as a co-chair of the new Community Safety Caucus. Together, we will continue to fight for the policies and funding necessary to protect and expand proven community safety initiatives."

"For too long, safety in America has been defined only by punishment and policing," said Congressman Johnson (D-GA). "That narrow view has left too many of our communities struggling with poverty, instability, and violence. The Community Safety Caucus is about changing that by pushing for policies that invest in prevention, lift up opportunity, and give people the tools to build healthy, thriving neighborhoods. I'm honored to stand with my colleagues in this effort to reimagine what true safety looks like."

"I am proud to be a co-chair of the Community Safety Caucus because I've seen firsthand what's possible when we bring stakeholders to the table and create real, sustained partnerships. This caucus's work is about lifting up those efforts and pushing for the federal resources and policy changes that can scale them nationally," said Congresswoman McIver (D-NJ). "Working to keep our communities safe is at the heart of why I serve, and I know that together, we can make community safety a reality-for every family, on every block, in every city across this country."

"Everyone deserves to live in a community that both is and feels safe, but we can't incarcerate our way out of poverty, substance abuse, and mental health crises. If we want to truly keep people safe, we have to address the root causes of these issues and abandon the idea of a one-size-fits-all approach," said Congressman McGarvey (D-KY). "I'm proud to join my colleagues in leading this effort to push for the holistic public safety solutions our communities need."

To launch the caucus, the members hosted a panel on Capitol Hill and were joined by frontline workers and organizers. The discussion was moderated by Thea Sebastian of The Futures Institute and panelists included Benny Ivey of Strong Arms of Mississippi, Freedom Jones of LifeBridge Health's Center for Hope, and Kyleesha Wingfield-Hill of the Newark Office of Violence Prevention and Trauma Recovery. The panel discussed their work to interrupt violence and deescalate crises and ways policies and budgets can make communities safer every day.

"I do this work because I know what it's like to be lost, and I know what it takes to find a way out. Sharing my story gives young people proof that change is possible, and Credible Messenger mentoring gives them the tools to write a different future than the one I almost chose for myself. Credible Messenger work is important for our country because it breaks cycles of violence and incarceration by replacing them with hope, healing, and opportunity. When people with lived experience guide the next generation, we strengthen families, reduce crime, and build safer, healthier communities for everyone," said Benny Ivey, Strong Arms of Mississippi.

"I come from the kind of community that's too often ignored. I was raised by my grandmother while my father was in prison and my mother fought through addiction. We made it through on government assistance, but what really changed my life was love, resilience, and someone giving me a chance. Today, I lead violence prevention in New Jersey's largest city - and we've brought crime down by 60%. That didn't happen by locking more people up. It happened because we stopped criminalizing pain and started investing in people. Real safety doesn't come from punishment - it comes from real resources, real support, and real hope," said Kyleesha Wingfield-Hill, Director Office of Violence Prevention and Trauma Recovery.

"CVI work shows us that those once caught in cycles of harm can become the strongest builders of peace. This model does not blame communities-it uplifts them, proving that transformation is possible. Community violence intervention is an industry with a proven record of saving lives and serves as a roadmap for safety rooted in healing and prevention. It is not an alternative system-it is the work of communities themselves, coming together to stop harm and create lasting peace," said Freedom Jones, LifeBridge Health's Center for Hope and Founder & CEO, Street Pause Inc.

Footage from the panel can be found here.

###