FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 3, 2004

Contact:
Julio Marcial, TCWF
(818) 702-1900

Severn Williams, i.e. communications
(415) 616-3930 Cell (415) 336-9623

STATEWIDE VIDEOCONFERENCE CONNECTS LEADERS FROM REDDING TO SAN DIEGO TO PREVENT VIOLENCE AGAINST YOUTH

New Voter Poll Released: Six in 10 say they would pay higher taxes to preserve programs to keep youth safe

Sacramento – Despite grim daily news reports of shootings, the number of youthful victims of gun violence ages 12 to 24 in California actually decreased by 48 percent statewide during the past decade. Several California counties, including Alameda, Fresno and Los Angeles, have also documented major declines in youth victims of firearm violence during the same period.

Experts say that state gun control laws enacted in the mid-1990s and other violence prevention and youth safety programs, including after-school opportunities and job training, have been major contributing factors in the decline of violence against youth. But now is not the time to rest on our laurels, according to youth advocates. Gun violence remains the second leading cause of death for youth. In addition, more than 6,000 young people, on average, are hospitalized each year in California for some form of violent injury.

More than 1,500 community leaders from Redding to San Diego joined forces today in a statewide videoconference to discuss effective programs and public policies that prevent violence against young people. “Keeping Youth Safe: Strategies that Work to Prevent Violence” was broadcast live from Sacramento (KVIE, Channel 6) and Los Angeles (KCET, Channel 28) and downlinked to sites in Fresno, Los Angeles, Redding, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose and Santa Barbara. Participants included lawmakers, law enforcement officials, health professionals, educators and youth advocates.

The hour-and-a-half live broadcast, sponsored by The California Wellness Foundation (TCWF), featured a discussion of programs that have been successful in reducing violence against youth. Community leaders in each region met afterwards to review local policies and programs designed to keep youth safe. The videoconference was moderated by Toni Guinyard, an award-winning journalist and reporter for “Life & Times,” a news and public affairs show on PBS station KCET, in Los Angeles.

The event coincided with the release of a new voter poll conducted by i.e. communications, which revealed that California voters of both parties and all state regions strongly believe violence prevention and safety programs for youth should have a high priority for funding.

For the second year in a row, three-fourths of California voters—including nearly seven in 10 Republicans and nearly eight in 10 Democrats—say the governor and Legislature should continue funding youth safety programs at current levels, even if less money is available for other programs, such as schools, health services, transportation and public safety. More than six in 10 voters are concerned about young people in their communities or local schools becoming victims of gun violence. Moreover, six in 10 voters, including 47 percent of Republicans and 72 percent of Democrats, say they would be willing to pay higher state taxes, if necessary, to maintain funding for violence prevention and youth-safety programs.

"Keeping these programs and policies in place is necessary if we are to keep our youth safe," said Gary L. Yates, TCWF President and CEO. “It is literally a matter of life and death."

Research by the RAND Corporation has shown that the best way to keep youth safe is to provide them with positive choices such as after-school opportunities, job training, and community-based violence prevention programs.

“Even during these tough budget times, it is critical that young people have places to go where they feel safe, and where they can participate in adult supervised activities, especially between the hours of 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., when they are at the greatest risk of becoming victims of violence,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy D. Baca.

“While policymakers and the public are concerned about the economy, I am concerned about young people in the community who need opportunities,” said Father Gregory J. Boyle of Homeboy Industries. “The fact is that nothing stops a bullet like a job.”

Statewide sponsors of the videoconference included: the California Police Chiefs Association, California State Parent Teachers Association, California State Sheriffs’ Association, CCS Partnership (joint effort of the League of California Cities, California State Association of Counties and California School Boards Association), Chief Probation Officers of California, Fight Crime: Invest In Kids, The League of Women Voters the Little Hoover Commission, and the Prevention Institute.

Videoconference speakers included: California Attorney General Bill Lockyer; California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Kim Belshé; Senator Dede Alpert; Senator Sheila Kuehl; Senator Bruce McPherson; Senator Deborah Ortiz; Senator Jack Scott; Assemblymember Judy Chu; Assemblymember Mark Ridley-Thomas; Assemblymember Darrell Steinberg; Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy Baca; Sacramento City Police Chief Albert Najera; Father Gregory J. Boyle; Homeboy Industries; Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Community Coalition; Gilbert Salinas, Youth ALIVE!; Belinda Smith-Walker, Girls & Gangs; and Tammi Wong, Mutual Assistance Network.

To view the voter poll, for additional facts about violence against youth, and to see a complete list of local sponsors and speakers, please visit www.preventviolence.org.

The California Wellness Foundation is a private, independent foundation created in 1992, with the mission of improving the health of the people of California by making grants for health promotion, wellness education and disease prevention. The Foundation prioritizes eight issues for funding: diversity in the health professions, environmental health, healthy aging, mental health, teenage pregnancy prevention, violence prevention, women’s health, and work and health. It also responds to timely issues or special projects outside the funding priorities.

Since its first year of operation, TCWF has awarded 3,512 grants totaling more than $432 million. It is one of the state’s largest private foundations, providing an average of $40 million in grants each year in pursuit of its mission.

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Note to reporters & editors: "The" in The California Wellness Foundation name is part of the Foundation's legal name. Please do not drop or lowercase the "T."