Poster #27 - Navigating Structural Challenges: Adaptive Strategies in Milwaukee’s Community-Based Gun Violence Interventions

• In Event: Poster Session I (posters 1 - 79)

Abstract

Community-based interventions are popular strategies employed to reduce urban gun violence in high-risk communities, especially in disinvested US neighborhoods, like Milwaukee. However, structural challenges often limit program implementation and effectiveness. Guided by social disorganization theory and community resilience theory, this study explores how programs navigate barriers and employ adaptive strategies. Preliminary empirical evidence indicates that limited funding, logistical constraints, and community mistrust are major challenges. Programs respond with adaptive strategies, including partnerships with local organizations and culturally tailored engagement, which help mitigate these barriers but only partially address systemic inequalities. By linking structural barriers to adaptive strategies, this study offers actionable insights for policymakers and practitioners aiming to scale or refine gun violence interventions in similar US urban contexts. Addressing both systemic inequities and program-level constraints is critical to reducing gun violence and promoting sustainable community safety in Milwaukee and beyond.

Author

• EBENEZER ADEGOKE OMOTOSHO, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee