War Zone Communities How to protect yourself from community violence
by Martia West, M.H.P.
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s the wars rage in Afghanistan, Iraq and Africa, there is a battle closer to home that you are fighting each day. The war is that of violence against you and your loved ones. In 2006, homicide was the second leading cause of death among youth ages 1-5 and 15-25 in Miami Dade County.* For every one thousand youth, 6 were charged with violent felony offenses and 4 were a victim of violent crime.** This means that as you walk the halls of your school and the streets of your neighborhood you will encounter youth who have been or will be convicted of crime, perhaps even against you and your loved ones. 16 teen vision magazine
Black males are 14 times more likely to be a victim of death by a firearm than white males.* Many teens are so accustomed to the violence in their communities that they have trouble recognizing it as a serious problem that they need to overcome. Neighborhoods with high levels of community violence are those in which gunfire, shootings, assaults, and