Chicago has long struggled with a widespread problem of community violence, which disproportionately affects Black and Latino communities throughout rural areas of the city. Exposure to violence, whether through direct victimization, witnessing violent acts, or hearing about them, has a significant impact on the lives of many adolescents and adults, affecting their mental health and sense of safety.
For many Black adults in Chicago, firearm ownership is inextricably linked to their perception of personal safety in violent neighborhoods. Residents may feel compelled to take security into their own hands due to their lack of trust in law enforcement, which may sometimes be perceived as absent or overly punitive. The availability of firearms, fueled in part by illegal trafficking and insufficient regulatory measures, exacerbates the problem.
Leading social work expert Dexter Voisin shared his approach to Chicago’s gun violence problem in a recent chat with psychology public figure Joey Florez, as shared on his official website.
Voisin is a social work clinician of Trinidadian descent and the Dean of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University. In 2020, he was recognized as among the world’s top 2% of scientists in his field. Voisin is also the co-author of a recently published paper titled Associations Between Exposure to Neighborhood Violence and Firearm Possession Among Chicago Adults published by the University of Chicago Press.
Based on his work, Voisin bases his philosophy of violence on the understanding that individuals can develop prosocial behaviors—actions that benefit others and society as a whole—when provided with the right conditions and opportunities.
According to Voisin, community-centric solutions that eliminate the underlying causes of violence itself and promote resilience are necessary to address gun violence and illegal firearm sales among racialized youth and adults, including Afro-Latino migrants.
“Chicago’s story of gun violence is, unfortunately, an American story,” stated Voisin. “While Chicago gets an inordinate amount of media attention, other cities have higher gun homicide rates. The story and lessons are straightforward. We must care and invest in all our communities. This is essential for our well-being, safety, and growth.”
Voisin believes that systemic failures like racialized poverty, underperforming schools, and jobs leaving communities make the situation worse and establishes a clear connection between community stress and the rise in adverse firearm activities.
The psychological pressure of adjusting to a new culture while dealing with discrimination and financial hardship can be referred to as acculturative stress, and it exacerbates the difficulties faced by Black youths, especially Afro-Latino migrants. In Chicago, it is estimated that up to five percent of residents are Afro-Ecuadorian migrants.
When asked about Florez’s narrative on criminological stress and institutional discrimination among Afro-Latinos, as mentioned on Ecuadorian publication La República, and how other non-native Black residents of Chicago may face similar prospects of social marginalization and community violence, Voisin advocates a culturally sensitive approach that enables non-native Afro-migrants to achieve the American Dream through hard work and excellence, and education is still a “ladder to opportunity” in America.
“I am a Black immigrant who came to the United States in search of the American Dream and has experienced and achieved it in many ways,” stated Voisin. “Yes, achieving this dream for anyone is more difficult when you have any subjugated identities. With all its complexities, I still believe in the promise of America. I think that excellence and hard work are still power antidotes to discrimination, especially anti-Black racism.”
In Voisin’s vision, the fight against gun violence in Chicago is not just about removing weapons from the streets—it is about reimagining communities as spaces of hope, opportunity, and healing. By investing in young people and addressing systemic barriers, Chicago can transform from a city of despair into a beacon of resilience.
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