This American Life is a podcast that features stories from around the world. This week they aired a two-part story where they spent 5 months at Harper High School in Chicago. Last year at Harper High School, 29 current and recent students were shot. When school lets out the students walk in the middle of the street because it’s easier to see around them if someone is approaching or shooting. Students cannot walk home alone for fear of being jumped or attacked but if you walk with too many people, it’s seen as repping a set or gang and you can be attacked for that also. Students walk directly home and stay home, they can’t even sit on their porches which causes depression in some cases. Every football player on the school team, other than a few freshman and sophomores, have been shot or shot at. This is their reality. This is Chicago.
Kids are dying in Chicago every day. Are we doing anything to save them? Is there anything that can done? It’s as if we left the teachers and social workers of Chicago “deal” with the problem. This is not a problem, this is a war. Chicago is a war zone that we are all ignoring. What is it going to take to help these lives? I am willing to say that I feel lost, completely lost on what I can do to help, what can I do to make a difference or even a small dent?
I bring this up not because I have the answers, I have no answers for this. I bring this up to open up a dialogue. This should be talked about, this should be confronted because we are watching this city kill itself.
Source: This American Life, Colorlines.com
