The Central American Resource Center (CARECEN) and Supervisor David Campos will sponsor a gun buyback program in the Mission District with the goal of reducing gun violence and creating a safer community.

Working handguns can be exchanged for $100 and working assault weapons for $200. A maximum of five weapons can be exchanged.

CARECEN—an organization that helps youth overcome poverty, immigration status, language barriers, and poor educational achievement by making them advocates for social change—has sent people into the Mission to create awareness in the neighborhood of the future gun buyback.

“We want to let the community know that we will take any approach to make the community safe and we need everyone. [Our goal is for] the Mission to be a gun-free, safe, and healthy neighborhood,” said Lariza Dugan-Cuadra, CARECEN’s Executive Director.

Supervisor Campos funded the program with $75,000—of that amount, $50,000 will go towards the buyback of guns while the rest will be used for face-to-face outreach in the community by CARECEN.

“When you reduce the number of weapons easily available to people, you reduce serious injury and death,” said Campos. “Safety in our community and the city as a whole is a major priority for our office.”

Roberto Hernandez, Mission resident and organizer at the Mission Peace Collaborative—an initiative created last Fall in response to five shootings that occurred in a six-week period, killing four Latino youths—expressed his support for the program.

“Buying back these guns is really going to help get the message out. Enough is enough—no more violence in the Mission,” said Hernandez. “[The gun buyback] has come at the right time because we have expanded collaboration throughout the community. We are going to work together to create stronger, more educated men and women.”

The intimate neighborhood version of the citywide gun buyback program held at the Omega Boys and Girls Club in December last year is supported by Mayor Edwin Lee, the Mission District Police Station, U.S. Bank, and University of California San Francisco.

The gun buy-back will take place on Thursday, Aug. 8 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in U.S. Bank’s parking lot (located on 22nd and Capp streets). To further help reduce gun violence and remove guns from the streets, join the campaign and donate at
www.gunbygun.org.