Mayor Wu and members of her cabinet— including Police Commissioner Michael Cox— gathered in Dorchester’s Mother’s Rest Park along Washington Street on Tuesday morning (May 27) to outline their strategy for securing public safety in Boston as the calendar turns swiftly towards the summer months.
Wu also used the moment at the Four Corners location to announce that her chief advisor on public safety— Dr. Isaac Yablo— would be elevated to a new role— heading up an “Office of Violence Prevention” within the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC).
“[He] will also continue to serve as senior advisor to me for community safety in the mayor’s office,” Wu said. “This transition will facilitate better communication and collaboration between some of our key partners within city government and center the public health approach that [Yablo] and all our partners have helped make possible, so Boston is the safest major city in the nation.”
Wu also announced a $1 million donation from the Cummings Foundation that she said would further the city’s violence prevention goals.
“I’m so thankful to our partners that know any act of violence is one too many and who aren’t satisfied as long as violence exists anywhere in our city,” said the mayor.
Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, commissioner of the BPHC, welcomed Yablo.
“The root causes of violence, that’s about public health,” said Ojikutu. “Violence not only causes harm to individuals, but also it has wide and deep and rippling effects through our communities, disrupting our sense of safety and causing trauma.”
Yablo said the city’s summer plan came about through a series of conversations with the community and special populations throughout nine neighborhoods – in addition to a series of “Village Vibes” events that were held in early spring.
On the policing side, Cox said his team intends to tackle gun violence and other crime categories that data show as being higher in the summer months. But he added that they will not overlook quality of life issues like fireworks and dangerous motor-scooter operators.
“To prevent violence and retaliation we are focusing on multiple issues this year,” Cox said. “One of them is obviously quality of life issues in the neighborhoods that includes mopeds, loud parties, fireworks, revelers, street racing and things that cause people to not feel good about their community, but may not be major crimes.”
The full Summer Safety Plan, and the longer-term plan to end violence in Boston are available at boston.gov/departments/community/safety.
