LANSING, Mich — “Gun violence in Lansing is still a concern,” said Paul Elam with Advance Peace.
That's probably not the first time you've heard that. It’s a concern many are working to combat.
“We know the prevalence of gun violence and now we understand it a lot better,” Elam said.
Elam oversees Advance peace.They mentor and identify those who are at risk of being involved in the violence.
“We determined that there are approximately 20 gangs that operate in the city of Lansing, we've engaged with many of them,” Elam said.
Elam his work involves learning the ins and outs of gun violence, which brings us to a report.
It was a partnership with Michigan State University who helped us co-author this report,” Elam said.
The 21 page, tell all report, gives details about Lansing's gun violence, highlighting key findings - like one, which states the majority of gun violence victims in Lansing are males, between the ages of 18-24.The report also says 82% of gun violence victims are Black.
“It's very concerning,” Elam said. “What we know is that many of these young African American youth are not being engaged.”
Another key finding, the report found that in 2024, 25% of fatal shootings were retaliatory and 14 percent of non fatal shootings were.
“While we report all gun violence in the report, it’s highly important we hone in on cyclical and retaliatory gun violence,” Elam said.
But not all findings were bad. Advance Peace has been operating in Lansing for 3 years and according to the report, since then fatal shootings have dropped by 52% and non fatal shootings dropped by 10%.
“Based on the success we have seen so far, we have recommitted to having the initiative in Lansing for another 3 years,” Elam said.
