The U.S. Justice Department has canceled hundreds of grants nationwide that support programs ranging from support services for victims of sexual assault to combatting violent crime — including two grants for a program that works to reduce gun violence in the Lansing area.
Documents obtained by the Associated Press indicate one of the grants canceled was $1 million allocated for Advance Peace Lansing, which aims to reduce gun violence by connecting with young men involved in gun-related offences. Another canceled grant was meant to fund research into Advance Peace’s methods.
Paul Elam is the chief strategy officer for the Michigan Public Health Institute, which runs Advance Peace Lansing. He said the immediate effects from losing that $1 million grant might be minimal because the organization has already spent all but $12,000. But Elam says he’s worried about another grant — $2 million awarded in 2023 — that has not yet been canceled…