Possible solution to gun violence which could be helpful to the state of Chicago
In this article, the authors provide a possible solution to gun violence which could be helpful to the state of Chicago, which is currently dealing with the menace. The article proposes an intervention called the Cure Violence model. The model seeks to treat gun violence as it would a communicable disease (Butts et al., 2015). Subsequently, dealing with gun violence requires a change in the attitude of communities experiencing gun violence. The article suggests that to curb gun violence, the process that should be undertaken is a medical intervention aimed at changing the characters and beliefs of a particular community. The authors further suggest that the Cure Violence model can be used without prejudice to the other interventions being undertaken by law enforcement officers.
In this article, Fontaine et al. (2018) offer insights into perspectives that young people living in Chicago harbor about gun violence. The authors conducted a study on youths in South Side Chicago and came up with various reasons as to why there is an increasing gun violence cases from the region. Fontaine et al. (2018) state that youths from South Side neighborhoods in Chicago believe that carrying guns means that they protect themselves from possible attack by others. The article records these reasons have significantly increased the cases of violence because almost one out five young people in the neighborhood is armed. There is a high probability of altercations which would likely be solved through each one of the young people drawing their guns.
In their recent 2020 article in the New York Times, MacFarquhar & Chiarito (2020) present grim statistics about the rise in gun violence in Chicago. The article states that out of the increasing deaths from gun-related violence in Chicago, nine are children below the age of eighteen. The deaths are unnecessary and have robbed the young lives a future of a lot of certainties. The article states that the once windy city of Chicago is quickly turning bloody as the death toll from gun violence continues to spike daily. The article raises concern and calls for solutions that can put an end to the alarming statistics from the South Side neighborhood of Chicago.
Pierre (2019) suggests solutions and strategies that can be implemented to put a stop to the growing statistics of gun violence in America. The article admits that there is an impasse about gun ownership which has been the reason why gun violence has found a permanent solution. Pierre (2019) states that gun ownership and violence is a matter of psychology which need various schools of thought coming to a common consensus. The psychological solution Pierre (2019) provides is that there should be an understanding of diversity and differences on both sides of the gun debate so as to get to a common middle ground. The article suggests that the solution should be aimed at maximizing public and private safety while minimizing fear.
Ross (2017) uses the concept of social learning theory to explain the issues of gun violence among African Americans. The African Americans in the South Side neighborhood of Chicago have been exposed to violent social interactions during their formative years, thus making them become violent in their youth years. A study of the South Side neighborhood and how life is difficult due to cases of poverty means that young people are left to fend for themselves at a very early age, thus making them turn to crime. Gun violence is also learnt from observation of other adults who solve most of their issues through violence.
The article by Wintemute (2015) provides epidemiology of firearm violence in the United States. The article emphasizes that gun violence has been a costly public problem to the administrations over the history of the country. Wintemute (2015) provides statistics of deaths that have been occasioned by firearm violence in the United States. According to Wintemute (2015), gun violence deaths in America over the past two decades have surpassed the deaths of American soldiers recorded during the Second World War. The financial costs from gun-related deaths and injuries also cost the country an estimated two hundred billion dollars annually making it close to a pandemic. The costs and loss of lives make it urgent to have solutions to gun violence menace, especially in Chicago.
The article suggests that in Chicago gun violence is most common in African American neighborhoods of South Side in Chicago. Most young black interacts with gun violence more than their white counterparts. Green et al. (2017) state most government officials and politicians view gun violence as a pandemic which is credited to gangs in the neighborhoods. However, Green et al. (2017) suggest that gun violence, especially in states like Chicago, should be considered an endemic issue which is like communicable diseases. Green et al. (2017) contend that communities pick gun violence tendencies from other communities, and it gets entrenched and unable to be cured. Subsequently, there is a need to go to the root of the problem instead of using knee-jerk reactions.
Ander et al. (2009) take a look at gun violence among school-going children in Chicago. The article provides reasons why African American school-going children are likely to engage in gun-related violence. School-going children are either victims or perpetrators of gun violence and in most cases, it happens in California. The main predisposing factor of gun violence in Chicago, according to Ander et al. (2009) is the living standards of African Americans in the state. Most of the African American families are poor and subsequently are forced to fend for themselves. The common solution to poverty is robbing other people who involve the use of guns. In most cases, it does end in fatalities.
Patton et al. (2019) undertook a study to identify the needs of post-discharge victims of gun violence in Chicago. The debate has been centered so much around the issue of gun violence and how to stop it that it has drawn the concern on the victims of the aftermath. The victims who suffer from gun violence undergo trauma and need measures that facilitate the rehabilitation and recovery process. Additionally, Patton et al. (2019), there is a need for resources to assist in the process of community reintegration for victims of gun violence. The recommendations take into consideration personnel such as doctors, community leaders and the general population.
Patton et al. (2016) provide details as to how social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have been used to further gun violence in Chicago. Most young between the ages of eighteen and twenty- four use social media sites to brag about their arsenal and in-process recruit people to their gangs. The communication is mostly centred on the types of guns owned and which are powerful. Subsequently, Patton et al. (2016) state that it popularizes the use of guns to solve problems leading to a lot of casualties.