WATCH: MPI Executive Director Vaughn Bryant Responds to DOJ Grant Cuts

Metropolitan Peace Initiatives’ Executive Director Vaughn Bryant responds to Department of Justice’s decision to cut more than $800 million in federal grants to CVI organizations in a NewsNation interview.

In a recent interview with NewsNation, Metropolitan Peace Initiatives (MPI) Executive Director Vaughn Bryant responded to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) announcement that it has terminated more than $800 million in grants that support Community Violence Intervention (CVI) programs nationwide. The decision has impacted hundreds of nonprofit organizations, including MPI, that work to reduce gun violence through CVI initiatives and police training.

“[This] impacts the local organizations we support,” Bryant said, noting that of the $6.2 million MPI receives in DOJ grants, approximately $3.7 million stands to be cut.

Bryant shared insights from a recent report published by Northwestern University’s Center for Neighborhood Engaged Research and Science (CORNERS). According to the report, Communities Partnering 4 Peace—convened by MPI—prevented at least 383 homicides and shootings across the city between 2017 and 2021. Additionally, Peacekeeper hotspots experienced a 41 percent overall reduction in victimizations from 2023 to 2024.

Watch the interview below.

Video courtesy of NewsNation