The Difference a Gun Makes

A gun can change a moment, a life, a family, an entire neighborhood. Like a catalyst in a chemical reaction, guns have a unique ability to transform the calculus of a situation. A gun can make you feel safe. Sometimes it’s symbol of cultural identity. It also has the power to destroy. On this episode of The Pulse, we look at the difference a gun makes.

Also heard on this week’s episode:

• A chat with Lore McSpadden, the militant pacifist who went on to co-found an LGBTQ gun club called Trigger Warning.
• Jermaine McCory and Ted Corbin both have first-hand experience with gun violence — Jermaine as a victim, and Ted as an emergency doctor. They describe what gun violence looks like from each of their perspectives, and their work with Healing Hurt People, a violence intervention program.
• Jessie Wright-Mendoza talks with her grandfather about his choice to keep a gun in the house after she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
• Poet and pediatrician Irène P. Mathieu wrote “Our Boy” to mark the murder of Jordan Davis — an unarmed black teenager who was shot and killed by a white man during a “loud music dispute” in front of a gas station.