The “Safe and Sound: Smart Strategies to Protect Children from Gun Violence” forum was held recently at the J.C. Penney Conference Center at the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL).
Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice and Vision for Children at Risk co-sponsored the event, which featured keynote speaker James A. Mercy. Mercy is a consultant with the division of violence prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
“If you are unfortunate enough to get shot,” Mercy said, “you have a one in three chance of dying from those injuries.”
The American Academy of Pediatrics has defined gun violence as a public health issue and have long advocated for policies aimed at ending gun violence. In 2010, Mercy said, almost 32,000 people died nationwide due to firearm injuries. He said 60 percent of those deaths were suicide-related and 36 percent were homicides. Homicide is the second-leading cause of death among young people ages 15-24, he said, but is the leading cause of death for African Americans.
“Exposure to this type of violence has impacts on the brain. It gets under our skin in profound ways,” he said. “It’s what neuroscientists are now referring to as ‘toxic stress.’”
He said children who have had direct exposure to violence were more likely to display signs of aggression, low self-esteem, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders.
During the Q & A session, an audience member asked whether income disparities contribute to gun violence.
“You find in countries with greater income inequality, you have higher rates of homicide,” he answered.
On the national level, he said, the CDC is focusing on preventive measures intended to reduce the frequency and severity of gun violence. He said proper gun storage, school and family-based programs, and advocacy organizations like Chicago-based Cure Violence have proven to be effective.
James Clark, vice president of community outreach at Better Family Life, called for a “paradigm shift” in how violence is confronted.
“We have reached a point that I like to call analysis-paralysis,” Clark said.
He said more direct action needs to be taken in the communities where the issue of gun violence is most prevalent.
Clark led a panel discussion that included the Rev. James Morris, pastor of Lane Tabernacle CME Church; Peggy Gordin, vice president of patient care at St. Louis Children’s Hospital; and Frankie Edwards, a Better Family Life volunteer. Each of the panelists shared with the audience their first-hand experiences with gun violence.
Morris spoke of his three sons. One was shot during his freshman year in college and is now paralyzed from the neck down. Gordin said her son was not raised in a community where he was exposed to gun violence. Yet, she said the issue of gun violence affects all people, crossing racial and socioeconomic barriers. Her son was shot and killed in what she described as a retaliatory attack.
“He was hunted down at 2 a.m. and shot in the back five times,” she said.
Edwards is a former gang member and drug dealer. He said he lacked positive role models growing up and turned to the streets.
“Now it’s time for us to go straight to our neighborhoods and deliver people resources so they can make better decisions about their life,” Clark said.
Other speakers included David M. Jaffe, M.D., medical director of emergency services at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and president of the Academic Pediatric Association; Lt. Janice Bockstruck, juvenile division commander of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department; Tiffany Anderson, Ed.D., Jennings School District superintendent; and Saaid Khojasteh, M.D., chief of the department of psychiatry at St. Joseph Health Centers, St. Charles and Wentzville and network associate medical director of behavioral medicine at SSM Health Care
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