Gun Violence Expert Dr. Jonathan Metzl Kicks Off Ashrei’s Foundations of Justice Speaker Series
November 13 & 14, 2024 Ashrei partnered with the Washington University Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity, & Equity to bring Dr. Jonathan Metzl to St. Louis.
Dr. Metzl, a native Missourian, gun violence expert, professor, and psychiatrist, is the Frederick B. Rentschler II Professor of Sociology and Psychiatry, and the director of the Department of Medicine, Health, and Society, at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
We hosted two events with Dr. Metzl: Courageous Conversations, a panel on the impact of gun violence in our community, and a book talk on his most recent book, What We’ve Become: Living and Dying in a Country of Arms, a New York Times Editor’s Choice selection.
Courageous Conversations: A Panel on the Impact of Gun Violence in our Community, November 13th, 2024
We are so proud that this event was the first in our Foundations of Justice series!
With invaluable input from our partners at The BRIC we invited experts and community leaders Dr. LJ Punch of The BRIC and Power4STL, Armon Reed-Wynne of Prime Protection STL, Keisha Blanchard of the BRIC Patient Advisory Board, and Alderwoman Shameem Clark-Hubbard of St. Louis Ward 10, to join Dr. Jonathan Metzl on a panel moderated by Pastor Andre Alexander of the Tabernacle Development Corp. Read about our panelists here.
The event began with a screening of The BRIC’s new film, “Every Bullet Leaves a Mark,” and a short Q&A with Dr. LJ Punch. “Every Bullet Leaves A Mark” brings to light the deep wounds that bullets create, both seen and unseen. This short film told the stories of people whose lives were changed by bullets and received care at The Bullet Related Injury Clinic in St. Louis and was an important way to frame the evening’s conversation.
The panel discussion confronted the persistent epidemic of gun violence, focusing on its deep-rooted impacts and potential solutions. The conversation, framed by a shared sense of urgency, explored structural inequities, the need for nuanced policies, and the human toll of firearm-related trauma. In the course of the conversations, some key themes emerged:
The Overlap of Gun Violence and Racism: The panel highlighted systemic disparities in how gun violence is experienced and addressed. Dr. Jonathan Metzl emphasized the racial politics embedded in the categorization of shootings, illustrating how incidents involving Black victims often go underreported or mislabeled compared to those in predominantly white communities.
The Aftermath of Trauma: Lived experiences of survivors underscored the gaps in post-trauma care. Keisha Blanchard, a gunshot survivor, shared her journey of seeking physical and emotional recovery, questioning why comprehensive support isn’t embedded in medical systems. The “brick,” a community-centered support initiative, emerged as a critical model for holistic healing.
Community-Led Solutions: The dialogue repeatedly pointed to the power of local, structural interventions—such as job programs, better street lighting, and accessible healthcare—as more effective than polarizing debates on gun laws. Dr. Metzl and Pastor Andre Alexander called for reinvesting in communities as a pathway to safety and resilience.
Bridging Divides in Gun Policy: Panelists challenged the "us vs. them" framing of gun ownership. Armon Reed-Wynne, a gun store co-owner, underscored the importance of recognizing responsible gun owners' perspectives and fears while advocating for shared accountability in addressing violence.
Policy and Advocacy Challenges: While participants acknowledged the role of government, they stressed the limitations of relying solely on top-down solutions. Dr. Metzl warned of political shifts that could hinder progress, urging communities to lead grassroots efforts to fill the void.
The discussion concluded with a call to action: to humanize those affected by gun violence, to invest in long-term structural changes, and to foster unity across ideological divides. As Pastor Alexander aptly noted, addressing gun violence is not just about policy but about valuing and restoring the humanity of those impacted.
This conversation serves as a vital reminder that tackling gun violence requires empathy, innovation, and collective resolve. By amplifying diverse voices and bridging divides, communities can pave the way for sustainable change.
Book Talk: What We’ve Become: Living and Dying in a Country of Arms, November 14th, 2024
The Washington University Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity, & Equity hosted Dr. Metzl for an in-depth book talk on his most recent book, What We’ve Become: Living and Dying in a Country of Arms open to Wash U students and staff as well as the public.
By looking at a 2018 racially-charged mass shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, Dr. Metzl uses What We’ve Become, sobering statistics, and cuurent news headlines to reexamine how we as a nation address gun violence.
From jonathanmetzl.com:
A searing reflection on the broken promise of safety in America.
When a naked, mentally ill white man with an AR-15 killed four young adults of color at a nearby Waffle House, Nashville-based physician and gun policy scholar Dr. Jonathan M. Metzl once again advocated for commonsense gun reform. But as he peeled back evidence surrounding the racially charged mass shooting, a shocking question emerged: Did the approach he championed have it all wrong?
Long a leading expert at the forefront of a movement advocating for gun reform as a matter of public health, Dr. Metzl has been on constant media call in the aftermath of fatal shootings. But the 2018 Nashville killings led him on a path toward recognizing the limitations of biomedical frameworks for fully diagnosing or treating the impassioned complexities of American gun politics. Increasingly, as Dr. Metzl came to understand it, public health is a harder sell in a nation that fundamentally disagrees about what it means to be safe, healthy, or free. This brilliant, piercing analysis shows mass shootings as a symptom of our most unresolved national conflicts. What We’ve Become ultimately sets us on the path of alliance-forging, racial-reckoning, and political power-brokering we must take to put things right.
