Founded more than 200 years ago, New York City Mission Society works with the city’s most disenfranchised and underserved populations. The organization manages a multi-million dollar portfolio of programs and services ranging from college and career preparation assistance to restorative justice programming.
In 2010, the Mission Society launched the SNUG (guns spelled backwards) program to reduce violence in the Central Harlem neighborhood. Through community outreach, canvassing, distribution of public education materials, and community events, the program staff works to affect the incidence of gun violence and public attitudes about violence. The program is designed to overcome community skepticism about violence reduction efforts and to build strong relationship within the neighborhood.
Every year, Harlem SNUG organizes and co-hosts youth summits, street corner panels, coffin walks, community talent shows, and holiday events, and now does so in collaboration with two new SNUG programs in East Harlem and the Bronx.
Harlem SNUG began to work with victims of violent trauma admitted to Harlem Hospital in 2011. Staff helped to develop a protocol to organize training and identification credentials for program workers as well as a process for responders to make contact with victims of violence as they are admitted to the hospital. These efforts have expanded into a partnership between Health and Hospitals Corporation and Cure Violence.
Program Particulars
| Host Organization: | New York City Mission Society |
| Program: | SNUG Central Harlem |
| Established: | 2010 |
| Contact: | Frank Horton fhorton@nycmissionsociety.org |
| Website: | nycmissionsociety.org |
| Implementation: | Full |
| Staff: | Supervisors (2); Outreach Workers (4); Violence Interrupters (2); Hospital Responders (3) |
| NYPD Precinct(s): | 32nd |
| City Council Member District(s): | Inez E. Dickens (9) |
| Adult residents living in poverty: | 27% |
| Residents 15-34 years of age: | 33% |
| NYCHA Communities: | Cornelius J. Drew-Alexander Hamilton and Samuel (City) |
| Wrap-Around Service Partners: | New York City Mission Society Preventive Services, New York City Mission Society KEYS, Legal Aide Society, Union Health Settlement, Harlem Mothers Save, Getting Out and Staying Out |