Keepin’ It Real: Teenagers Talk About Gun Violence

Gun violence is prevalent in TV and on film. Who decides what it looks like? How do they make those decisions? In this episode, students interview a television writer who has written for shows that feature gun violence.

How do our lived experiences affect our opinions of gun violence? In this episode, youth talk to people in their lives about what they think of gun violence in media – and in their lives.

When young people hear about gun violence on the news or on social media, how do they feel? Does social media itself contribute to acts of gun violence? In this episode, a panel of young people discuss their reactions to a recent school shooting.

In our series finale, our panel talks about all the myriad of influences they receive as young people – from social media to the elders in their community – and how that messaging influences their understanding of guns and violence.

How do the police and the government affect gun violence in Harlem? How do local authorities relate (or fail to relate) to the communities they serve? Our panel explores this complex question in depth.

How are the presence of guns and the experience of gun violence in Harlem different for boys and girls? Our panel explores this issue in depth, touching on questions of bravado, peer pressure, and self defense.

In the series premiere, our panel of young people introduce the deep issues that guns and gun violence present in their community, why it’s a problem that’s larger than guns themselves, and why it’s so challenging to prevent.