Chicago: Gun violence is a leading cause of premature death in the U.S. Guns kills more than 38,000 people and cause nearly 85,000 injuries each year. Gun violence is estimated to cost the American economy at least $229 billion every year. Beyond the economic cost, we also see fractured families, neighborhoods, and communities and more than 5 per cent of America’s children have witnessed a shooting.
Firearm injuries and deaths in the United States have increased in recent years and adversely affect many children and adolescents. In 2020, firearms became the leading cause of death among children ages 19 and below and in the first six months of 2022, there were over 300 mass shootings across the U.S., including the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas.
Negative mental health consequences stemming from exposure to gun violence
In addition to physical harm, direct and indirect exposure to gun violence can negatively affect the mental health and well-being of youth. This brief explores trends in firearm-related injury and mortality among children (ages 17 and below) and how they vary by race and sex. We analyze data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Wonder injury and mortality database and define firearm-related deaths as gun assault deaths, suicide deaths by firearm, deaths due to accidental firearm discharge, legal intervention leading to firearm death, and firearm deaths from an undetermined cause. This brief also examines the negative mental health consequences stemming from exposure to gun violence and describes recent policy responses.
Firearm death rates sharply increased among Black and Hispanic youth during the pandemic
In 2021, the rate of firearm-related deaths among Black youth was 12.0 per 100,000 – substantially higher than any other racial and ethnic group and six times higher than White youth. Although Black children made up 14% of the youth U.S. population in 2021, they accounted for 46% of youth firearm deaths. Additionally, from 2018 to 2021, the rate of firearm-related deaths doubled among Black youth and increased by 50% among Hispanic youth.
Children under the age of 10 became victims of sporadic Gun violence in Chicago
Over one recent weekend in Chicago, two children under the age of 10 became victims of the city’s rampant gun violence.
Mateo Zastro, 3, was shot and killed while in the car with his mother and siblings in an apparent road rage incident on Sept. 30. Then 7-year-old Legend Barr was shot and wounded as his family arrived at church on Oct. 2.
Recent gun violence archives analysis of the nation’s 50 largest cities shows homicides are down nearly 5% from last year after two years of pandemic-era increases.
Shootings are declining in Chicago
In Chicago, shootings are down 20% through the end of summer and homicides have fallen 16%. That means 101 fewer people were shot this year than last, claimed by Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown.
Also read: Congress Accuses Shashi Tharoor of Having Two Faces Why? Read This
What’s behind the small but encouraging decline? The Chicago police credit both community engagements, as well as a new, more surgical deployment of officers to crime scenes after an analysis by the department, showed half of all shootings and homicides occurred in specific areas.
Steps taken against this multi-pronged issue
According to Brown, police have also been taking an average of 12,000 guns off Chicago’s streets every year — including “ghost guns,” which are unregistered firearms that can be assembled from at-home kits.
Police say they have another powerful tool in their investigations, however: The department uses a system called “ShotSpotter,” where sound sensors are placed throughout Chicago to detect and locate gunfire.
Brown stressed in an interview with reporters that gun violence was a multi-pronged issue. “We’re talking about policing, but this is about economic development,” he said. “This is about poverty. This is about, in many instances, race.”
Brown explained his belief in economic development as a crime-fighting tactic.
Also Read: UK: “I have made a mistake” Home Secretary Suella Braverman Steps Down from Liz Truss Cabinet
Brown further elaborated “We’re starting to see that commitment now. So that we can have that sustained decline because we are investing in affordable housing. We’re investing in jobs; we’re investing in mental health services and other drug treatments, social services.”
Authorities have set an example of how that support has made an impact, an area once known for being a crime hotspot that’s now been turned into a basketball court and green space for the community.
All these measures are slowly showing desired results. But, to eradicate such colossal and recurrent crisis, it will take time and sustained efforts – a small step in the right earnest, already taken, may pave the way for greater success.
Keep watching our YouTube Channel ‘DNP INDIA’. Also, please subscribe and follow us on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and TWITTER
