A stellar panel, moderators and involved audience conversed on "The Impact of Children and Gun Violence” on March 29 at a meeting organized by LWV of Broward, Young Professionals Network of the Broward County Urban League, T.J. Reddick Bar Association and Race and the Races.
Dr. Michael Brannon, a forensic psychologist and director of the Institute for Behavioral Science and the Law, answered the first questions concerning the impact of gun violence on the brains of developing children. Brannon acknowledged that it was difficult to help kids feel safe and trust in the current climate. They undergo drills at school, hear about shootings on tv, and know the child who is missing from the next desk. They also pick up their parents’ anxieties.
Brannon says the less exposure children have to news, social media and video games in which violence is normalized, the less likely they are to develop symptoms such as overwhelming anxiety, which can affect brain development.
As to the children who perpetuate violence, Broward state attorney Harold F. Pryor believes they need to be identified and helped long before their cases reach his desk. In kindergarten some children are bullies, hurt others and show a lack of empathy. They need family focused programs with community based connections.
We also need to hold people in the video game industry accountable for putting profit over our children’s welfare. The criminal justice system is not designed to protect children. Once they’ve committed murder Pryor needs to decide whether to try them as minors, and get them some services until they reach adulthood, or try them as adults and incarcerate them for longer to protect the community. He admits this is always a hard decision.
Defense Attorney Kaysia Earley, Esq contributed to a lively conversation about parental responsibility and community based programs. She noted that parents are responsible if they have a gun in the house. They are negligent if the child has access. She noted that for therapists, young men will probably not talk to anyone in a suit who doesn’t look like them. A community activist at the meeting suggested hiring men who are out of long terms in prison, who can’t get jobs because of that, to talk to youngsters about the choices they make in life. Earley urged those present not to give hope or the fight to protect our children.
The program was moderated by Ruby Green, who works for the state's attorney office and co-chairs LWV Broward criminal justice committee, Sandra Cherfrere, co-host of Race and the Races and Valerie Waldon, program chair of the Young Professionals Network of the Broward County Urban League
Thanks to League volunteer Ronni Sandroff for this report.