Attorney General Eric Holder Commends City Officials, Leaders for Their Plans to Prevent Youth Violence

WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today commended teams from six cities across the country for developing comprehensive plans to reduce youth violence in their communities. Mayors, U.S. Attorneys and other officials from Boston; Chicago; Detroit; Memphis, Tenn.; Salinas, Calif.; and San Jose, Calif. presented their plans at the Summit on Preventing Youth Violence, April 4-5, in Washington, D.C.

“Addressing childhood exposure to violence – and implementing bold, innovative and collaborative solutions – is a top priority for this administration,” said Attorney General Holder. “The great strength of this week’s forum lies in the broad scope of expertise and the multi-disciplinary partnerships that have been forged within the cities represented. The comprehensive plans put forward this week, as part of the administration’s National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, send a powerful message – that, in this country, we will not give up on our children.” 

The summit is part of the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention launched by President Obama in October 2010. The goal of the forum is to use multi-disciplinary partnerships, balanced approaches and data-driven strategies to address youth violence. These six cities were selected based on need, geographic diversity, willingness and capacity to develop comprehensive plans. More localities are expected to join the forum.

In addition to the Department of Justice, the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Labor and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy provide technical assistance to the forum’s participating cities.

More details about the forum and summaries of the city plans are available at: www.findyouthinfo.gov .