KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist was in Kalamazoo Tuesday morning to talk the success of Operation Safe Neighborhood and its efforts to reduce gun violence.
"We want to make sure that we are preventing and reducing and eliminating the scourge of gun violence that all of us have a story about. I have stories about going back to my childhood. Every one of you knows someone who has been shot," he said.
Operation Safe Neighborhood is a statewide initiative aimed at reducing gun violence by getting illegal guns off the street.
Since the program launched in 2021, Gilchrist says they have confiscated 599 guns, but the work doesn't stop there.
He added that the state has invested $1.5 billion to support public safety efforts across Michigan. He also mentioned that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed four new gun laws to help reduce violence, including background checks, safe storage requirements, and preventing domestic violence offenders from owning guns.
Founder of Hope Thru Navigation is excited about the work the state and local officials are putting in, but says she would like to see the youth included in the work.
"Most of the crimes that are happening with guns are in areas that are marginalized neighborhoods. And so it really is a crisis, because it's gonna affect your health. It's gonna affect the health of your community; it's going to affect the health of the people that are being impacted," said Gwendolyn Hooker, founder of Hope Thru Navigation.
Gilchrist also says preventing gun violence is going to take an entire community — everyone can play a role in helping identify people who may be a danger to themselves or someone else.
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