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U.C. Berkeley Professor Sheds Light on Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue

Last month, after years of debate, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared gun violence an urgent public health crisis and released an extraordinary report outlining its devastating consequences. Murthy’s 32-page advisory is the first federal government report to fully acknowledge the health impacts of gun violence on Americans, whether they are direct victims, families, and friends of victims, or live in communities that face ongoing street violence or have experienced a mass shooting.

Published

1 year ago

August 17, 2024

Oakland Post

iStock image by Aquaturkus

By Elinor Simek

UC Berkeley News

Last month, after years of debate, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared gun violence an urgent public health crisis and released an extraordinary report outlining its devastating consequences.

Murthy’s 32-page advisory is the first federal government report to fully acknowledge the health impacts of gun violence on Americans, whether they are direct victims, families, and friends of victims, or live in communities that face ongoing street violence or have experienced a mass shooting.

To Jason Corburn, a professor at UC Berkeley School of Public Health, gun violence has always been a public health issue, and he has just finished teaching students at Berkeley School of Public Health how to address it as one.

The class, “Urban Gun Violence Prevention: A Public Health Perspective,” was Berkeley Public Health’s first course dedicated to addressing urban gun violence.

“Regardless of where you stand on guns, there is no doubt that gun violence is a key contributor to disability, injury and of death for Americans,” said Corburn. “Gun violence is both a source of trauma and stress and a response to unaddressed traumas. Urban gun violence is a community health equity issue, since Black and Brown youth, men under 35 years old, and hyper-segregated neighborhoods are most likely to experience firearm violence.

“Yet, this is also a population and place issue, because the impacts of firearm violence can also affect others in the community, regardless of direct or witnessed experience,” Corburn said.

Firearm-related injuries, such as suicides and homicides, are the No. 1 cause of death for children and adolescents (ages 1 to 19) in the U.S., with the heaviest burden disproportionately falling on the Black community. Homicide is the No. 1 cause of death for Black men under 44 years-old in the U.S.

Urban gun violence is sometimes called “street violence” or “community gun violence,” and is defined as violence in public spaces between individuals who do not know each other intimately. It’s distinct from domestic violence, mass shootings, or suicide.

“By offering this course, I wanted to bring attention to today’s urban gun violence epidemic,” Corburn said. “While this type of violence is often overlooked compared to the bigger headlines of mass shootings, urban gun violence is ongoing, harming the same communities over and over again.”

Corburn, a joint professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning, taught the class with Joe Griffin and DeVone Boggan. Griffin, who received his MPH and DrPH from Berkeley Public Health, is executive director of Youth ALIVE!, an Oakland-based nonprofit organization that works to reduce violence.

Boggan, also a UC Berkeley grad, is chief executive of Advance Peace and former director of Richmond’s Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS). Corburn has worked in partnership with Richmond’s ONS and Advance Peace since 2007.

The class was structured as a seminar which combined readings, videos, and discussions with researchers and practitioners. Anchoring the course was a review of structural racism in America and how specific policies, such as redlining, dehumanizing policing, and environmental injustices, create the social, spatial and institutional conditions for gun violence.

Ten students from Berkeley Public Health and City and Regional Planning participated. The instructors co-facilitated class each week, along with students who gave presentations.

Each class also hosted a guest speaker from leading research and governmental organizations around the country. The guests, many of whom had firsthand experiences with gun violence, led students in discussions of street outreach, participant engagement, hospital-based interventions, the role of media and other potential solutions to urban gun violence.

Among the speakers was Greg Jackson, deputy director of the first White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, created in 2023. Other guests included Abené Clayton, a journalist who is part of The Guardian’s Guns and Lies in America project; David Muhammad, executive director of the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, Dr. Shani Buggs and Dr. Kravitz-Wirtz from UC Davis’s Violence Prevention Research Program; and Sam Vaughn, director of Richmond’s Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS); among others.

Inspiring students

“The class was an amazing opportunity to learn of the cutting edge research within the gun violence prevention field,” said Ricardo Sarmiento, who graduated from UC Berkeley in May with an MPH in Health Policy & Management. “The guests that were invited had their finger on the pulse of the community.

“The class used the lenses of public health, city planning, policy advocacy, and community organizing,” Sarmiento said. “The presenters all provided different approaches to reduce gun violence.”

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Oakland Post: Week of December 31, 2025 – January 6, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – December 31, 2025 – January 6, 2026

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14 hours ago

January 2, 2026

Oakland Post

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Big God Ministry Gives Away Toys in Marin City

Pastor Hall also gave a message of encouragement to the crowd, thanking Jesus for the “best year of their lives.” He asked each of the children what they wanted to be when they grow up.

Published

5 days ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

From top left: Pastor David Hall asking the children what they want to be when they grow up. Worship team Jake Monaghan, Ruby Friedman, and Keri Carpenter. Children lining up to receive their presents. Photos by Godfrey Lee.

By Godfrey Lee

Big God Ministries, pastored by David Hall, gave toys to the children in Marin City on Monday, Dec. 15, on the lawn near the corner of Drake Avenue and Donahue Street.

Pastor Hall also gave a message of encouragement to the crowd, thanking Jesus for the “best year of their lives.” He asked each of the children what they wanted to be when they grew up.

Around 75 parents and children were there to receive the presents, which consisted mainly of Gideon Bibles, Cat in the Hat pillows, Barbie dolls, Tonka trucks, and Lego building sets.

A half dozen volunteers from the Big God Ministry, including Donnie Roary, helped to set up the tables for the toy giveaway. The worship music was sung by Ruby Friedman, Keri Carpenter, and Jake Monaghan, who also played the accordion.

Big God Ministries meets on Sundays at 10 a.m. at the Mill Valley Community Center, 180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley, CA Their phone number is (415) 797-2567.

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First 5 Alameda County Distributes Over $8 Million in First Wave of Critical Relief Funds for Historically Underpaid Caregivers

“Family, Friend, and Neighbor caregivers are lifelines for so many children and families in Alameda County,” said Kristin Spanos, CEO, First 5 Alameda County. “Yet, they often go unrecognized and undercompensated for their labor and ability to give individualized, culturally connected care. At First 5, we support the conditions that allow families to thrive, and getting this money into the hands of these caregivers and families at a time of heightened financial stress for parents is part of that commitment.”

Published

5 days ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

Costco. Courtesy image.

Family, Friend, and Neighbor Caregivers Can Now Opt Into $4,000 Grants to Help Bolster Economic Stability and Strengthen Early Learning Experiences

By Post Staff

Today, First 5 Alameda County announced the distribution of $4,000 relief grants to more than 2,000 Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) caregivers, totaling over $8 million in the first round of funding. Over the full course of the funding initiative, First 5 Alameda County anticipates supporting over 3,000 FFN caregivers, who collectively care for an estimated 5,200 children across Alameda County. These grants are only a portion of the estimated $190 million being invested into expanding our early childcare system through direct caregiver relief to upcoming facilities, shelter, and long-term sustainability investments for providers fromMeasure C in its first year. This investment builds on the early rollout of Measure C and reflects a comprehensive, system-wide strategy to strengthen Alameda County’s early childhood ecosystem so families can rely on sustainable, accessible care,

These important caregivers provide child care in Alameda County to their relatives, friends, and neighbors. While public benefits continue to decrease for families, and inflation and the cost of living continue to rise, these grants provide direct economic support for FFN caregivers, whose wages have historically been very low or nonexistent, and very few of whom receive benefits. As families continue to face growing financial pressures, especially during the winter and holiday season, these grants will help these caregivers with living expenses such as rent, utilities, supplies, and food.

The funding for these relief grants comes from Measure C, a local voter-approved sales tax in Alameda County that invests in young children, their families, communities, providers, and caregivers. Within the first year of First 5’s 5-Year Plan for Measure C, in addition to the relief grants to informal FFN caregivers, other significant investments will benefit licensed child care providers. These investments include over $40 million in Early Care and Education (ECE) Emergency Grants, which have already flowed to nearly 800 center-based and family child care providers. As part of First 5’s 5-Year Plan, preparations are also underway to distribute facilities grants early next year for child care providers who need to make urgent repairs or improvements, and to launch the Emergency Revolving Fund in Spring 2026 to support licensed child care providers in Alameda County who are at risk of closure.

The FFN Relief Grants recognize and support the essential work that an estimated 3,000 FFN caregivers provide to 5,200 children in Alameda County. There is still an opportunity to receive funds for FFN caregivers who have not yet received them.

In partnership with First 5 Alameda County, Child Care Payment Agencies play a critical role in identifying eligible caregivers and leading coordinated outreach efforts to ensure FFN caregivers are informed of and able to access these relief funds.FFN caregivers are eligible for the grant if they receive a child care payment from an Alameda County Child Care Payment Agency, 4Cs of Alameda County, BANANAS, Hively, and Davis Street, and are currently caring for a child 12 years old or younger in Alameda County. Additionally, FFN caregivers who provided care for a child 12 years or younger at any time since April 1, 2025, but are no longer doing so, are also eligible for the funds. Eligible caregivers are being contacted by their Child Care Payment Agency on a rolling basis, beginning with those who provided care between April and July 2025.

“This money is coming to me at a critical time of heightened economic strain,” said Jill Morton, a caregiver in Oakland, California. “Since I am a non-licensed childcare provider, I didn’t think I was eligible for this financial support. I was relieved that this money can help pay my rent, purchase learning materials for the children as well as enhance childcare, buy groceries and take care of grandchildren.”

Eligible FFN caregivers who provided care at any time between April 1, 2025 and July 31, 2025, who haven’t yet opted into the process, are encouraged to check their mail and email for an eligibility letter. Those who have cared for a child after this period should expect to receive communications from their child care payment agency in the coming months. FFN caregivers with questions may also contact the agency they work with to receive child care payments, or the First 5 Alameda help desk, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PST, at 510-227-6964. The help desk will be closed 12/25/25 – 1/1/26. Additional grant payments will be made on a rolling basis as opt-ins are received by the four child care payment agencies in Alameda County.

Beginning in the second year of Measure C implementation, FFN caregivers who care for a child from birth to age five and receive an Alameda County subsidized voucher will get an additional $500 per month. This amounts to an annual increase of about $6,000 per child receiving a subsidy. Together with more Measure C funding expected to flow back into the community as part of First 5’s 5-Year Plan, investments will continue to become available in the coming year for addressing the needs of childcare providers in Alameda County.

About First 5 Alameda County

First 5 Alameda County builds the local childhood systems and supports needed to ensure our county’s youngest children are safe, healthy, and ready to succeed in school and life.

Our Mission

In partnership with the community, we support a county-wide continuous prevention and early intervention system that promotes optimal health and development, narrows disparities, and improves the lives of children from birth to age five and their families.

Our Vision

Every child in Alameda County will have optimal health, development, and well-being to reach their greatest potential.

Learn more at www.first5alameda.org.