{"id":2194,"date":"2025-06-03T19:06:56","date_gmt":"2025-06-04T00:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/justicevoices.org\/?post_type=podcast&#038;p=2194"},"modified":"2025-11-29T16:09:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T21:09:03","slug":"ep-25-healing-trauma-in-high-crime-communities","status":"publish","type":"episodes","link":"https:\/\/justicevoices.org\/?episodes=ep-25-healing-trauma-in-high-crime-communities","title":{"rendered":"Ep. 25: Healing Trauma in High Crime Communities"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2194\" class=\"elementor elementor-2194\" data-elementor-post-type=\"episodes\">\n\t\t\t\t<div data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fc09cd9 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"fc09cd9\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d46c386 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"d46c386\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Healing Trauma in High Crime Communities: From Gun Violence Survivors to Community Heroes.<\/p><p>Healing from trauma and helping others heal in the high crime community of East St. Louis, Illinois, Skyla Pawnell and Gloria Hicks share their powerful stories of transformation from being victims to community healers.<\/p><p>Skyla lost her son Aaron to gun violence due to a Facebook dispute over a girlfriend. Gloria has witnessed multiple family tragedies including her brother&#8217;s murder and nephew&#8217;s killing. Together, they respond to shooting scenes and help victims and families navigate the devastating impact of gun violence. They show up when\u2014and where\u2014help is needed most.<\/p><p>Key Insights from This Episode:<\/p><p>\u2022 Trauma-informed community response: How survivors become the most effective healers for other trauma victims.<\/p><p>\u2022 Fast thinking vs. slow thinking: The psychology behind impulsive gun violence and how community intervention to defuse conflicts can prevent shootings.<\/p><p>\u2022 Bridge-building with police: Practical strategies for rebuilding trust between law enforcement and high-crime communities.<\/p><p>\u2022 Victim compensation resources: Critical support systems many families don&#8217;t know exist.<\/p><p>\u2022 Community-based healing: How feeding the homeless and supporting shelters creates pathways to personal healing from trauma.<\/p><p>\ud83c\udfaf Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction: Meet Skyla and Gloria &#8211; Community heroes in East St. Louis<\/p><p>02:00 Skyla&#8217;s story: Who was Aaron? Dreams cut short by gun violence<\/p><p>04:40 The tragedy: Facebook dispute leads to fatal shooting<\/p><p>09:30 Living with unresolved trauma: Seeing the killer daily<\/p><p>11:20 Gloria&#8217;s losses: Multiple family members lost to violence<\/p><p>13:20 Community response failures and finding support elsewhere<\/p><p>16:20 Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice: Connecting families to resources<\/p><p>18:00 From grief to service: Feeding shelters and homeless populations<\/p><p>21:30 POWERFUL MOMENT: Gloria prevents a shooting through community intervention<\/p><p>25:40 Chicago vs. East St. Louis: Different community dynamics<\/p><p>28:30 Police-community relations: Building trust through collaboration<\/p><p>31:30 Why gun violence is declining in East St. Louis<\/p><p>33:40 What communities need: Jobs, housing, and youth programs<\/p><p>37:40 Why they stay: Pride in East St. Louis despite challenges<\/p><p>41:20 Healing through helping: Breaking cycles of revenge<\/p><p>43:20 Host analysis: The science behind community-based violence prevention<\/p><p>\ud83d\udca1 Trauma Recovery Strategies Discussed:<\/p><p>\u2022 Service as healing: How helping others process their own trauma<\/p><p>\u2022 Community accountability: Creating &#8220;eyes on the street&#8221; to prevent violence<\/p><p>\u2022 Immediate crisis response: Showing up at shooting scenes with resources and support<\/p><p>\u2022 Long-term relationship building: Moving beyond one-time interventions to sustained community presence<\/p><p>\u2022 Youth intervention programs: Working with at-risk teens before they become statistics<\/p><p>\ud83d\udd17 Resources Mentioned:<\/p><p>\u2022 Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice (multiple state chapters): https:\/\/cssj.org\/<\/p><p>\u2022 Illinois Attorney General victim compensation (retroactive 5-year eligibility): https:\/\/www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov\/safer-communities\/supporting-victims-of-crime\/crime-victim-compensation\/<\/p><p>\u2022 Moms Demand Action: https:\/\/momsdemandaction.org\/<\/p><p>\u2022 Book&#8211;Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence, by Jens Ludwig: https:\/\/press.uchicago.edu\/ucp\/books\/book\/chicago\/U\/bo244203115.html<\/p><p>Why This Matters: Research shows gun violence stems primarily from spontaneous reactions during conflicts rather than calculated criminal acts. Gloria&#8217;s real-time intervention\u2014stopping a young man from shooting during a street argument\u2014demonstrates how community members can literally save lives by helping people shift from &#8220;fast thinking&#8221; (impulsive reactions) to &#8220;slow thinking&#8221; (considering consequences).<\/p><p>Book recommendation: &#8220;Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence&#8221; by Jens Ludwig of the Chicago Crime Lab provides the research foundation supporting community-based approaches like Skyla and Gloria&#8217;s work.<\/p><p>Subscribe and share to help these vital voices reach more people working to heal trauma and prevent gun violence in their own communities.<\/p><p>Justice Voices website and blog: https:\/\/justicevoices.org<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46fb90c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con 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class=\"elementor-video\"><\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"_angie_page":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"page-builder","ast-site-content-layout":"full-width-container","site-content-style":"unboxed","site-sidebar-style":"unboxed","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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