These Students Grew Up Around Gun Violence. They Decided It Was Time To Talk About It.

Enlarge this image

Makiyah Hicks and Jonetta Harrison in front of their high school, Duke Ellington School of the Arts, in Washington, D.C. They are finalists in this year’s NPR Student Podcast Challenge for their entry «Loss and Transformation.»

Dee Dwyer for NPR

hide caption

toggle caption

Dee Dwyer for NPR

Enlarge this image

Makiyah Hicks, sits in her bedroom where she recorded her part of the podcast «Loss And Transformation.»

Dee Dwyer for NPR

hide caption

toggle caption

Dee Dwyer for NPR

DESA TDP Audio · Loss And Transformation — A Podcast

D.C. has long struggled with one of the highest rates of gun violence in the country. The district saw 198 homicides in 2020, a 16-year-high, and the 2021 homicide rate is already outpacing 2020.

Harrison, Hicks and Wells wanted their podcast to show that it’s not just about the numbers. Real people are impacted by every life lost to gun violence, so the students talked to three of them: first, Darlene Hazel, Hicks’ grandmother. Then one of Harrison’s friends, Jayla Faust, who lost her stepfather to gun violence.

Enlarge this image

Thom Woodward stands in front of Duke Ellington School of the Arts located in Washington, D.C. where he teaches. Woodward guided his student Jonetta Harrison, Makiyah Hicks and Quin Wells in creating the first podcast title «Loss and Transformation.»

Dee Dwyer for NPR

hide caption

toggle caption

Dee Dwyer for NPR

Enlarge this image

Jonetta Harrison, sits on her computer in her bedroom where she recorded her part for the podcast «Loss And Transformation.»

Dee Dwyer for NPR

hide caption

toggle caption

Dee Dwyer for NPR

Jonetta Harrison, sits on her computer in her bedroom where she recorded her part for the podcast «Loss And Transformation.»

Dee Dwyer for NPR

Losing a loved one to gun violence is painful, but Harrison says the podcast is about what community members take away from that pain, too. «You have a loss, but because of this loss, you have transformed to a better person or have a better view of life.»

Brown, for example, dealt with the grief by creating art.

He owns a clothing brand, Love1, which donates to communities affected by gun violence. Brown is currently looking to fund therapy for students in D.C.’s public schools. He has also donated thousands of dollars to the One Gun Gone project, which repurposes guns into artwork to raise awareness about gun violence.

«I created this brand because I wanted to live,» he says.

Harrison, Hicks and Wells are starting college this fall and hope the lessons they learned from the people in their podcast will help them handle loss, and challenges, in their own lives.

Sneha Dey is an intern for NPR’s Education Desk.