Social Sciences Forum 43rd Annual Du Bois Lecture

Dr. Joseph Richardson
Joel and Kim Feller Professor of African-American Studies and Medical Anthropology
University of Maryland, College Park

Life After the Gunshot:
Structural Violence, Interpersonal Violence and Trauma Among Young Black Men In Washington DC

Gun violence is the leading cause of death and disability among Black boys and young Black men between the ages of 16-34. In 2020, over 19,000 people were killed in the US from firearm related incidents, the highest death toll from gun violence in 20 years. According to a recent research report on the economic cost of gun violence published by Everytown for Gun Safety, the cost of gun violence is approximately $280 billion dollars. The social determinants of health that contribute to gun violence as a public health crisis: structural racism, concentrated poverty, the effects of mass incarceration and hyper-surveillance, limited access to mental health resources, underfunded and under-resourced schools, and poor housing are all forms of structural violence that contribute to lower life expectancy rates among young Black men. For example, while gun violence is the leading cause of death among young Black men, the COVID pandemic reduced the life expectancy of Black men in the US by three years, the largest gap among all racial and ethnic groups. Furthermore, undiagnosed and untreated trauma from exposure to structural and interpersonal violence also increases the likelihood of poor health outcomes among Black boys and young Black men. This talk will illuminate and interrogate the ways structural violence, interpersonal violence and trauma impact the lives of young Black male survivors of firearm injury in the nation’s capital.