CHICAGO — Once again, five of Chicago’s professional sports teams are joining forces to help the city which they call home.
In fact, their partnership is now in its sixth year to tackle a major problem both here and around the country.
The Chicago Bears, Blackhawks, Bulls, Cubs, and White Sox are continuing the Chicago Sports Alliance which they started in December 2017 in which they are giving financial support and resources to find solutions to gun violence.
Friday’s announcement coincides with National Gun Violence Awareness Day, which is June 2-4.
As part of the effort, the alliance and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation will give $1.5 million in grants to five organizations in Chicago that are making efforts to address gun violence.
For 2023, these include:
- Readi 2.0 at Heartland Alliance
- Enlace Chicago with New Life Centers of Chicagoland and Little Village Youth Safety Network Organizations
- The Chicago Fund for Safe and Peaceful Communities at Chicago Community Trust
- Chapin Hall Center for Children
- Chicago Peace League at Breakthrough Ministries
Since the beginning of the alliance, the teams have invested $6 million in programs like these, with the McCormick Foundation giving another $2.5 million in matching grants since 2019.
Other organizations that have been benefitted through the years include.
- Choose 2 Change
- Little Village Prevention and Intervention Initiative
- READI Chicago
- University of Chicago Crime Lab and analyst training by the Crime Lab for the Chicago Police Department’s Strategic Decision Support Centers
