As kids continue to be exposed to gun violence in Akron and around the country, the director of Akron Children’s Trauma Center said more education and preventative training are needed to keep children safe.

“We see more than what we would like to of firearm violence,” Dr. Nathan Heinzerling said.

At a May 29 conference titled Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention, doctors, advocates, educators and others gathered to talk about what Akron kids experience when it comes to gun violence. The conference comes at a time when Akron continues to fight against youth firearm violence in its community.

Incidents including a shooting last summer outside of Mason Community Learning Center that injured at least three kids have sparked a community-wide discussion about gun violence. Nonprofits called for action, young filmmakers created a documentary about the issue, and the City of Akron gave out sports and wellness grants aimed at preventing gun violence.

“Not only are young people suffering, but our community is suffering,” said Kemp Boyd, who is the executive director of Love Akron. “We can’t continue to default and be reactionary.”

Every adult plays a role in preventing gun violence in our community, and that starts with having proactive conversations with kids about firearm safety, Boyd said.

Firearm-related injuries are the leading cause of death for kids, and in 2021, the United States reached its all-time record number of gun deaths at 48,830.

Dr. Chethan Sathya, a pediatric trauma surgeon who is the director of New York’s Northwell Health’s Center for Gun Violence Prevention, speaks during at the May 29 Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention conference at Akron Children’s hospital. Doctors, advocates, educators and others gathered to talk about what Akron kids experience when it comes to gun violence.
Dr. Chethan Sathya, a pediatric trauma surgeon who is the director of New York’s Northwell Health’s Center for Gun Violence Prevention, speaks during at the May 29 Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention conference at Akron Children’s hospital. Doctors, advocates, educators and others gathered to talk about what Akron kids experience when it comes to gun violence. (Ryan Loew / Signal Akron)

What should parents and adults know about gun violence?

Many kids and teens in Akron are exposed to gun violence frequently, and they carry those incidents with them internally, Boyd told an auditorium of dozens. Feelings of fear, hyper-awareness and the pressure to appear unaffected often lead to emotional exhaustion, he added.

“Some young people walk into spaces like this one, already calculating the exits, already sizing up the room, already thinking about and processing who’s a threat,” Boyd said.

So kids and teens feel comfortable asking questions about gun violence, he said, adults should build trust early, listen more than talk and create safe spaces for conversation.

“The thing we can’t ignore is the firearm reality, and this is a part of their world,” Boyd said. “The exposure is happening, the curiosity is real, the silence increases the risk.”

Kemp Boyd, executive director of Love Akron, speaks during at the May 29 Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention conference at Akron Children’s hospital. Doctors, advocates, educators and others gathered to talk about what Akron kids experience when it comes to gun violence. “Not only are young people suffering, but our community is suffering,” said Kemp Boyd, who is the executive director of Love Akron. “We can’t continue to default and be reactionary," Boyd said.
Kemp Boyd, executive director of Love Akron, speaks during at the May 29 Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention conference at Akron Children’s hospital. Doctors, advocates, educators and others gathered to talk about what Akron kids experience when it comes to gun violence. “Not only are young people suffering, but our community is suffering,” said Kemp Boyd, who is the executive director of Love Akron. “We can’t continue to default and be reactionary,” Boyd said. (Ryan Loew / Signal Akron)

How can you help?

Destigmatizing gun violence and advocating against it are ways to raise more awareness and educate as many people as possible, said Dr. Chethan Sathya.

Reframing pediatric gun violence as a public health issue is also vital to preventing it, said Sathya, who is the director of New York’s Northwell Health’s Center for Gun Violence Prevention.

“I encourage everyone to think about gun violence no different than they think about COVID-19 or substances,” said Sathya, who is also a pediatric trauma surgeon at Northwell’s Cohen Children’s Medical Center.

“The power of conversation is immense,” he said.

The basics of gun safety

Here are some safety tips from the “Akron Children’s Goes Orange: Strategies to Address Pediatric Firearm Injuries and Their Prevention” conference:

  • Treat every firearm as if it’s loaded.
  • Never point a firearm at anything that you would not want to destroy.
  • Keep your finger off the trigger.
  • Know your target and beyond.
  • Keep firearms stored safely to avoid children finding them.

“Responsibility — it’s not optional,” Boyd said. “Not accepting responsibility is dangerous.”

Lauren Cohen is a senior journalism major at Kent State University. She is a community reporting intern for the Akron Beacon Journal and Signal Akron.