RISE Project

The Reimagining Intimacy through Social Engagement project forges new community-based responses to the intersection of gun and intimate partner violence and supports healthy relationships.

Gun violence and intimate partner violence are often viewed as separate problems that require different responses, but neighborhoods impacted by high rates of gun violence also have the highest levels of reported domestic violence incidents. Access to a gun makes it five times more likely that a partner experiencing abuse will be killed.

RISE works to ensure community-based anti-violence efforts have more tools and resources to prevent and respond to the intersection of intimate partner and gun violence. RISE supports healthy relationship norms and the prevention of domestic violence at the community level through public education campaigns, community programming, and efforts focused on community healing. The approach is survivor-informed, holistic, and rooted in the principles of safety, accountability, and transformative justice.

RISE is part of New York City’s anti-violence Crisis Management System and works in tandem with gun violence prevention programs. The project is run in partnership with the Mayor’s Office to Prevent Gun Violence.