Readers React: Imagine 20 killings near your child’s school every year. That’s the reality in part of L.A.
To the editor: Thank you for your articles on gun violence experienced by students in South Los Angeles.
I was horrified reading one chart showing the number of gun deaths in five years within one mile of various high schools. One school showed 105 deaths nearby; that’s an average of 21 killings every year.
I tried to visualize 21 gun deaths in one year within a mile of South Pasadena High School. Unimaginable!
Many of our military men and women come home from war zones with post-traumatic stress disorder, most returning to safe environments. But these children in the inner cities suffer ongoing PTSD, experiencing the deaths of friends, family and neighbors. They are fearful for their lives every day.
Our society must address the causes and effects of this violence. The children in the midst of it will be the citizens of tomorrow.
Jan Arenz, South Pasadena
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