The $85,200 grant was awarded by the Jewish Heritage Fund to Whitney/Strong, a non-profit focused on responsible gun ownership and finding common ground solutions to end gun violence. Working alongside UofL SPHIS on the research is the Louisville Metro Office of Safe and Health Neighborhoods.Ģż

“Gun violence is a tragic product of structural violence ingrained in our community’s historical and current context. We are hopeful that a clear, data-driven illustration of the far-reaching economic costs of gun violence will help build political will to address the structures underlying the violence in Louisville,ā€ said Monique Williams, faculty member in the UofL SPHIS Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences and director of the Louisville Metro Office of Safe and Healthy Neighborhoods.

While other studies have been conducted to quantify the cost of gun violence to taxpayers and governments, Whitney/Strongā€™s study aims to provide a more in-depth view of the economic impacts of specific incidents of gun violence, the resulting impact on youth, and how investment in gun violence prevention can increase tax revenue and family wealth in high-violence areas, while also increasing protective factors for healthy youth development. Whitney/Strong hopes to share the completed results of the study by the end of 2022.Ģż

ā€œGun violence does more than harm individuals and families; each and every act of gun violence has an effect on entire communities in ways weā€™re only now beginning to understand. Our hope is to better recognize those effects and help spur action that, ultimately, can save lives,”Ģżsaid Whitney Austin, .Ģżā€œWith record gun violence in Louisville, year after year, we need to have a better understanding of just what our city is giving up by not tackling this issue. Iā€™m eager to get this study underway so we can better see that preventing gun violence is not a problem for one neighborhood or just an issue for our city government. Gun violence is devastating to every facet of our communityā€™s health – physical, mental and economic – and understanding the extent of that harm will bring us one step closer to preventing more suffering.ā€

This story .Ģż

UofL News: What are the main struggles for youth transitioning to adulthood?Ģż

Brown: It is important that we not only think about young people as ā€œthe future.ā€ They hold a lot of power now, whether adults want to acknowledge it or not. For example, we have a number of youth across the country currently advocating for safer school environments related to both the COVID-19 pandemic and censorship bills being passed that prevent them from learning about the history of the world we live in. I believe that one of the biggest barriers youth experience today is related to systemic racism and oppression. These are the root causes of a lot of the issues we see youth experiencing today.

UofL News: How can we make it easier for young people to succeed throughout life?Ģż

Brown: Adults, especially those in positions of power, should learn about the importance of understanding how critical it is to have youth who come from historically excluded backgrounds at the table when making decisions that directly impact them and their communities. These young people should be able to have a say in what policies are created and enforced, not just in the realm of education but in every single system that impacts their wellbeing. This includes our political, social, economic and education systems.

UofL News: You hold a PhD in recreation, park and tourism sciences with a concentration in youth development. Some of your work examines recreational healing spaces. Can you explain the meaning and how these spaces are so important for youth development?Ģż

Brown: When it comes to youth development, we tend to only view it through the lens of education. However, what we know is that the education system does not always have the capacity to support youth within the context of their communities. We also have a great deal of evidence on certain groups of young people, such as Black and Brown youth, being pushed out of school into the criminal legal system due to inequitable policies and practices that exist within the education system. With that knowledge, I focus my work on community spaces where youth find safe havens and safety. These spaces, like a community center, boys and girls club, summer camps, have the power, resources and abilities to cultivate healing spaces for youth to recover from the oppression they experience in school or in their communities.

UofL News: Tell us about the professional development program you are creating.

Brown: The professional development program utilizes the Social Justice Youth Development (SJYD) framework, an approach focused on the adoption of principles and practices that work to close the gaps created by inequities and access to opportunities for youth.

First coined by Shawn Ginwright, a researcher at San Francisco State University, SJYD is an approach to engaging in youth work that shifts the focus from changing youth behaviors to acknowledging the role that systemic racism and oppression play in the lives of youth who come from communities who have been historically excluded.

Since its inception in 2010, a number of youth development researchers and practitioners, including myself, have adopted this framework as a tool to cultivate social change in their communities by engaging with youth in a way that redistributes power between youth and adults. SJYD creates opportunities for youth voices to be placed at the center of decision-making about ways to address issues that directly impact them and their communities.

UofL News: Before joining the SPHIS faculty, you completed a post-doc at UofL, working with the Youth Violence Prevention Research Center (YPPRC). How did that work build your current research?Ģż

Brown: My work with the YVPRC focused on integrating SJYD into youth violence prevention research. This helped to support the team at YVPRC to shift the narrative about the cause of youth violence being interpersonal behaviors to focus more on structural violence. During my postdoc with YVPRC, I learned that a number of youth development professionals wanted to use SJYD approaches in their work with youth but did not have the tools, resources or supports needed to integrate it into their day-to-day activities. They needed not only training support but also funding which is why the professional development program we are building is focused on both youth development professionals and youth serving organizations and funders.

UofL News: Long-term, what do you hope will be the outcome of your research?Ģż

Brown: My hope is that youth development professionals, youth serving organizations and funders of youth development work integrate more equitable approaches in their policies and practices in order to integrate SJYD throughout the whole system of youth development. My hope is also that through this process of creating room for more equity within the youth development system, the voices of youth are not just heard but also have decision-making power.

UofL News: Anything else youā€™d like to share?ĢżĢż

Brown: We are currently to help us lead the work of developing the professional development program for youth development professionals in Louisville. Additionally, Iā€™m always trying to amplify youth voices whenever I am given the opportunity to. I would like to take this opportunity to uplift the work of the youth at the Food Literacy Project in Louisville and encourage everyone reading this to check out their .

In February, the political science major and first-generation college student was one of 22 students in the country invited to the inaugural national gathering of the Obama Foundationā€™s My Brotherā€™s Keeper Alliance that supports boys and young men of color.

ā€œI was able to meet and speak to President Barack Obama. I shook his hand, looked him in the eye, and told him my name and where I came from,ā€ Brown said.Ģż

A Louisville Youth Voices Against Violence Fellow at the Youth Violence Prevention Research Center, Brown works with researchers, community partners, and community organizations to help reduce violence in West Louisville. He helps design and implement the organizationā€™s social norming campaign.

ā€œI first heard about the My Brotherā€™s Keeper Alliance when my coworker sent me the application and suggested I apply for MBK Rising,ā€ Brown recalled. ā€œI decided to apply because the only requirements were ā€˜Are you a young man of color?ā€™ or ā€˜Are you doing exceptional work on behalf of young men of color?,ā€™ and all I had to do was submit a 60-second video highlighting work I do to ensure young men of color thrive.”

The west Louisville native traveled to Oakland, California, where he participated in MBK Rising, a two-day workshop aimed at finding solutions to obstacles and closing opportunity gaps that young men and boys of color face.

As part of his trip, along with engaging with Obama, Brown met with and listened to prominent figures that included NBA star Steph Curry, Grammy-winning singer John Legend, four-time NFL Pro Bowl selection Richard Sherman, and award-winning actor Michael B. Jordan.

ā€œWhat stood out most to me at the event was the number of young men of color from across the country that attended the event,ā€ Brown, a Martin Luther King Jr. and Porter Scholar, said. ā€œOnce I got there, I was able to meet plenty of young men of color that were doing exceptional work in their respective communities whether it revolved around mentorship, violence prevention, speaking, writing (or) music.

ā€œThere were so many talented, passionate individuals that I couldnā€™t help but be inspired.ā€

Brown said he became involved in the community because of first-hand experience of inequity within the city. He wanted to make a difference and believes that the event strengthened his desire to do just that.

ā€œBeing invited to MBK Rising meant that my involvement and dedication to my community is important and necessary,ā€ Brown said. ā€œHaving the opportunity to be recognized on a national level meant that I had an opportunity to widen my scope and have an impact on more peopleā€™s lives.”

Toward the latter part of the trip, Brown was one of hundreds able to attend and participate in a Town Hall meeting with Obama and Curry.

Though the dialogue and advice resonated with the crowd, it wasnā€™t Brown’s biggest takeaway from the trip. Rather, it was the continued connections with other attendees.Ģż

ā€œMoving forward, with the young men Iā€™ve met at the end, we have already created an everlasting bond and we continue to stay in touch with each other and raise one another up,ā€ Brown said. ā€œI not only learned valuable lessons on community activism, but most importantly, I learned the importance of mentorship, brotherhood and service. I learned that in order to climb, I must lift as well.

ā€œI will continue to uplift those in my community and am looking forward to more opportunities to grow and connect with individuals wanting to make a difference.ā€

SPHIS received a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2015 toĢż, led by Monica Wendel, DrPH, MA, associate dean for public health practice.

Through this center,ĢżĢżwere hired to help create and test the media/social media campaign aimed at reducing violence by opposing the perception that violence is normal, accepted and expected, particularly among African American youth. The campaign aims to combat violence by making youth aware of their own pride and history. It also seeks to foster community dialogue around difficult issues such as racial and social injustices. In doing so, the YVPRC hopes to raise critical consciousness in an effort to promote racial justice and reduce youth violence.

The media campaign features the youth fellows in YouTube videos, television commercials, radio ads, neighborhood billboards, bus shelters, print ads,Ģż,Ģżand social media platforms using #YVPRC. This particular media effort concludes at the end of December 2017; the overallĢżĢżcampaign continues through spring 2020.

from the campaign kick-off held at the Louisville Central Community Centers on Saturday, May 20.