CHICAGO (NewsNation Now) — Gun violence is steadily increasing across the United States.
Philadelphia is having its deadliest year since 2007. Shootings are up 57% over last year.
In New York City, the number of shooting victims is up — almost 100% to date over last year.
There have been 624 homicides in Chicago so far this year, up from 510 in 2019, according to the Chicago Sun Times.
Why are certain neighborhoods more violent than others? What’s behind the violence in areas like Englewood, on Chicago’s South side?
Dexter Voisin has a lot of thoughts on that. He’s a professor at the University of Toronto but also spent 20 years at the University of Chicago.
He explores the reasons and solutions in his latest book: “America the Beautiful and Violent.”
Joe Donlon: There are two main questions, why does it happen and how do we solve it? You spend a lot of time in this about the “why’s,” and it’s complicated.
It’s complicated, but it all comes down to resources. So, if you have kids growing up in communities of deep need, where there are no jobs, they don’t see positive images of themselves.
Dexter R. Voisin
Voisin said we’re living in two Americas, and we all have to pay attention because we all pay the cost…even the privileged.
Watch Voisin’s full discussion with NewsNation’s Joe Donlon in the player above.