‘Groundswells of change’: Black activists welcome evolution in gun violence debate

The Safer Communities Act finally addressed prevention efforts with $250m dedicated to funding violence interrupters

In 2013, a month after the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, a group of Black pastors and other activists visited the Obama White House to press the administration to do more to prevent gun violence in communities of color.

Obama had just released his post-Newtown gun violence prevention plan, which did not include any funding for community violence prevention efforts, and which made no mention of the disparate impact of gun violence on Black Americans.