Skip to Content

Soldiers in Iraq. Stock photo from Pixabay
Providence, Rhode Island

Gun violence: More risk in Chicago and Philadelphia than Iraq, Afghanistan

A striking statistic: young Americans are several times more likely to be injured by a gun in cities like Chicago and Philadelphia than they are while serving as a soldier in a foreign country.

Published: January 9, 2023, 10:24 am

    Read more

    Brandon del Pozo, an assistant professor of medicine at Brown University’s Warren Alpert Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island and his co-authors in the JAMA Network Open of the American Medical Association made the revealing statistical comparison. The researchers explained: “In 2020, the homicide rate in US cities increased by 30 percent. For the first time, firearms became the leading cause of death among children, adolescents and young adults.”

    Brandon del Pozo and his co-authors therefore came up with the idea of ​​using combat mortality statistics from GIs in the Iraq war and Afghanistan as a benchmark for young men from minority groups aged between 18 and 29 years.

    The study identified a population of 129 826 young men residing in the top 10 percent of violent crime-affected US cities of Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New York. Among them, there were 470 murders and 1 684 gunshot wounds in 2020 and 2021.

    Young men in Chicago’s most violent districts were more than three times as likely to be killed by a gunshot compared to soldiers sent to Afghanistan, the researchers found, while those in Philadelphia’s most violent area were almost twice as likely to be shot to death.

    In all districts of the two cities studied, young black men overwhelmingly face the risk of firearm-related death, the findings showed.

    “These results are an urgent wake-up call for understanding, appreciating and responding to the risks and attendant traumas faced by this demographic of young men,” the study leader said.

    The gun murder data showed black and Hispanic men represented 96 percent of those who were fatally shot, and 97 percent of those injured in a shooting, according to the report.

    For the scientists, the statistical finding is clear: “Adult young men who lived in the district (zip code; ed.) most affected by violence in Chicago had a 3,23-fold higher risk of being fatal victims of a firearm attack than a deployment in Afghanistan […].” In Philadelphia’s most violent areas, the risk was still almost twice as high as in Afghanistan, at a factor of 1,91. The comparative figures from Afghanistan came from the years 2001 to 2014, and from the Iraq war for the years 2003 to 2014.

    The incidence of nonfatal firearm injuries in Chicago and Philadelphia was lower than in a military operation in Afghanistan, but about the same as for US soldiers in Iraq. New York and Los Angeles fared somewhat better.

    Overall, young men in Chicago’s crime hotspots have a 1,3 percent annual risk of being the victim of a firearm murder. Together with non-fatal injuries, this risk increases to 5,8 percent annually. This overall risk was 3,2 percent in Philadelphia, 0,7 percent in New York, and 0,6 percent in Los Angeles.

    Philadelphia’s residents are 44,1 percent black, 35,8 percent white, 13,6 percent Latino and 7,2 percent Asian. According to the 2021 US Census Bureau American Community Survey, the population of Chicago, Illinois was 36,1 percent white, 28,5 percent black and 6,9 percent Asian.

    Chicago however, is considered the most gang-occupied city in the United States, with a population ranging from 100 000 active members from over 70 gangs, with more than 150 000 members. Gang warfare and retaliation is common in Chicago. Gangs were responsible for 61 percent of the murders in Chicago in 2011 already. Since then, the problem has only become bigger.

    Former Chicago Police Superintendent, Garry McCarthy, blamed Chicago’s gang culture for its high murder rates and other violent crime, stating “It’s very frustrating to know that it’s like 7 percent of the population causes 80 percent of the violent crime… The gangs here are traditional gangs that are generational, if you will. The grandfather was a gang member, the father’s a gang member, and the kid right now is going to be a gang member”.

    Consider donating to support our work

    Help us to produce more articles like this. FreeWestMedia is depending on donations from our readers to keep going. With your help, we expose the mainstream fake news agenda.

    Keep ​your language polite​. Readers from many different countries visit and contribute to Free West Media and we must therefore obey the rules in​,​ for example​, ​Germany. Illegal content will be deleted.

    If you have been approved to post comments without preview from FWM, you are responsible for violation​s​ of​ any​ law. This means that FWM may be forced to cooperate with authorities in a possible crime investigation.

    If your comments are subject to preview ​by FWM, please be patient. We continually review comments but depending on the time of day it can take up to several hours before your comment is reviewed.

    We reserve the right to del​ete​ comments that are offensive, contain slander or foul language, or are irrelevant to the discussion.

    Americas

    Ohio disaster: When hedge funds manage rail traffic

    East PalestineAfter the derailment of a freight train loaded with highly toxic chemicals in the US state of Ohio, a devastating environmental catastrophe may now be imminent. The wagons burned for days, and a "controlled" explosion by the authorities released dangerous gases into the environment.

    US President Biden orders ‘spy’ balloon to be shot down

    WashingtonThe US President gave the order to shoot down China's "spy balloon". The balloon had caused US Secretary of State Blinken to cancel a trip to Beijing. In the meantime, a second balloon was sighted.

    US is heading for a financial ‘catastrophe’ US Treasury Secretary warns

    WashingtonOn January 19, 2023, the United States hit its debt ceiling of $31.4 trillion. The country faces a recession if it defaults on its debt, the US Treasury Secretary warned in an interview. Her warning underscored the danger of printing money.

    Elon Musk, the first person in history to destroy $200 billion in a year

    Never before in human history has a person lost as much money in one year as Elon Musk did in 2022. The Tesla and Twitter boss lost $200 billion last year. However, with his remaining $137 billion, he is still the second richest person in the world.

    Extreme cold and winter storms sweep across US

    More than a million households without electricity, thousands of canceled flights, temperatures in the double-digit minus range and already 41 fatalities: The US is being overwhelmed by an enormous cold wave.

    Soros sponsors violent leftists and anti-police lobby as US crime surges

    WashingtonThe mega-speculator and "philanthropist" George Soros remains true to himself – he has been sponsoring anti-police left-wing groups with billions of dollars.

    FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried arrested after crypto billions go missing

    NassauHe is no longer sitting in his fancy penthouse, but in a cell in the Bahamas: Sam Bankman-Fried (30), founder of the crypto company FTX, is said to be responsible for the theft of 37 billion euros. An interesting fact is that media in the EU have so far kept this crime thriller almost completely secret.

    How Twitter helped Biden win the US presidency

    WashingtonThe short message service Twitter massively influenced the US presidential election campaign two years ago in favor of the then candidate Joe Biden. The then incumbent Donald Trump ultimately lost the election. Internal e-mails that the new owner, Elon Musk, has now published on the short message service show how censorship worked on Twitter. The 51-year-old called it the “Twitter files”.

    Alberta PM suspends cooperation with WEF

    EdmontonThe newly elected Premier Danielle Smith of the province of Alberta in Canada has recently made several powerful statements against the globalist foundation World Economic Forum and its leader Klaus Schwab. She has also decided to cancel a strange consulting agreement that WEF had with the state.

    AIPAC cheers US midterm results

    WashingtonThe American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) expressed satisfaction with the US midterm election outcome. Republican voters, on the other hand, deplored their party's weak performance.

    Go to archive