Why is violence prevention important?
Violence happens in every community across the nation. It affects and involves people of all ages, from the very young to the elderly. Violence affects all racial, educational, and socioeconomic groups. Low-income communities, however, are disproportionally affected by violence. These communities have greater exposure to contributing factors, fewer protective factors, and less access to appropriate responses to violence. Violence not only takes a toll on its direct victims, it also adversely affects the victim’s family, friends, and neighbors. At the neighborhood level, violence can undermine business prosperity and property values. It can deter potential residents, employees and businesses. Preventing violence can improve quality of life in obvious ways, by decreasing injury, death, health and mental health problems. Violence prevention can also remove fear, stem deterioration of communities, empower residents and save financial resources that would otherwise be spent on responding to
