Mayor Johnson addresses link between poverty and violence in Milwaukee

NOW: Mayor Johnson addresses link between poverty and violence in Milwaukee
NEXT:

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Milwaukee police are still investigating the deaths of six people found at a house near 21st and Wright on Sunday night. 

Police did confirm that those deaths were being investigated as homicides. 

On Wednesday, Jan. 26, Cavalier Johnson was at a home just a few blocks away, highlighting the city's efforts to turn foreclosed and condemned properties into livable homes. 

He was asked about the violence in the city, and specifically about the six people found dead. 

He acknowledged the ongoing issues of guns in the wrong hands, but also how poverty is, in his words, driving the violence -- something he's seen firsthand.

"When I was a kid living on that block, I experienced and witnessed some of the more egregious acts of violence that I've ever seen in my life," said Johnson. "And it's unfortunate all these years later, that an incident like that would occur on that block. It just goes to show you that we need more things like this to help lift people out of poverty that begets the violence in our community."

He continued to stress how the city's home-buying program can help reduce crime and offer more economic opportunity to Milwaukee residents. 

Share this article: