Long Way Down Gun Violence Quotes

“The Raging Silence” is an article about a series of events that were happening in The city of Philadelphia. Matthew Teague, the author, tells about the underlying issues that had such a debilitating effect of the shooting on the community. It discusses the history of gun and gang violence in the community and how it causes a rift between them and law enforcement. Thought the article Matthew Teague argued about member of the community having easy access to guns that result to a unsafe environment.

Dave Cullen’s journalistic portrayal of the infamous school shooting in Columbine reveals the raw truth of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris’ murder spree while uncovering misconception surrounding it. Cullen dives deep into the heart of motive and recovery, offering a newfound understanding of both the victims and the killers. The tragedy at Columbine was planned as a series of explosions that would have killed nearly 2,000 students. The bombs failed, however, so the shooters abandoned their plan and went on a spree through the school instead, using semiautomatic weapons they acquired at a gun show, where background checks can be bypassed.

Also, from my observation of the author’s interaction with the gang members, he acted in a way, that was out of respect, and in no way condemning of the gang members or their culture. He befriended them and truly showed great interest in their personal lives. He also knew that he couldn’t’ approach these gang members in a hostile manner, as he learned this from a gang member, who stated that “You can’t just walk into the neighborhood and act like a tough guy, you get beat up.” Moreover, I also observed that the author seemed mild mannered, and certainly did not come across as this know it all, arrogant researcher. I can only imagine how scary this entire experience may have been for him, but nonetheless, he allowed himself to “hang around” the gang members as they drove him around their dangerous neighborhood.

Shaun had believed that Carlson Riggs killed his brother because of their past gang, ‘The Dark Suns’. Carlson Riggs was a part of the gang ‘The Dark Suns’, which is how he connected with Frick. Will got suspicious of this and asked Frick about Carlson Riggs, who Will believes shot his older brother Shawn because of the gang they were connected to at the time. Will then asked Frick if he knew Carlson Riggs or had any connection to him. He then proceeded to answer in a confused tone, “Who?”

In the United States, every year there are around 2,000 gang-related homicides and in the realistic fiction novel, The Outsiders, by S.E Hinton, it explores the issues of gang violence, and teenagers in gangs. Around 40% of all members in gangs are teenagers, who are getting involved in some dangerous things very early in life. In the novel The Outsiders, the “Greasers” which is a gang of all teenagers, fight other gangs and commit serious crimes such as murder. We as a society need to pinpoint why teenagers join gangs and stop them beforehand. We also need to help people get out of gangs if they are already in one.

Jason Reynolds uses many literary devices in his book Long Way Down to convey various messages and connections to the real world in gun-related violence. For example, America faces massive gun violence issues in large cities like Chicago, and even small-town schools. Chicago has a rate of 29 homicides related to firearm use for every one thousand residents which is leading the US in gun violence-related statistics. Opposing gangs make up a large number of these homicides as they are constantly at each other's throats in search of vengeance for a brother or friend that was killed much like the gun violence cycle displayed in this book. Long Way Down emphasizes the harm and sorrow that follows behind gun violence as well as the never-ending cycle

However, he did not think it through and shot off instinct of who he thought had done it. “I didn’t know/ he wasn’t the right guy,/ Pop said,/ a tremble in/ his throat. / I was sure that it was Mark’s killer./ Had/ to/ be”. (Reynolds 220) Mikey needed to avenge his brother to make it right. He justified death with more death because he let his emotions control him.

In his novel Long Way Down, author Jason Reynolds explores a community of "the broken" where bloodshed is essentially normalized, where all live by a set of rules that must never be disobeyed: no crying, no snitching, and always take revenge. Reynolds's purpose is to emphasize the significance of gun violence and its effect on the victims who must suffer its consequences because it provokes internal conflicts such as guilt, depression, and revenge. He uses hyperbole, imagery, and symbolism to adopt a mournful, enraging, and devastating tone to convince readers in similar circumstances to Will always to persevere because revenge will only produce another bitter and anguished individual. Reynolds uses hyperbole in his novel to highlight the

1. No crying 2. No snitching and 3. The most important of them all… Seek revenge. So Will followed the rules.

Before the death of Shawn, he told Will the story of how their dad “was killed for killing the man who killed our uncle” (Reynolds, 2017, pg 203). This evidence illustrates Mikey's downfall as analogous to the situation Will is currently in. Will is in pursuit of revenge against Riggs, his brother's alleged murderer. Based on Mikey’s path, Will’s quest for revenge will eventually lead to his demise. It is a valuable lesson for Will as he battles the cycle of revenge.

Did you know that there are at least 321 people that deal with gun violence on a daily basis? Out of the 321 people, 111 people have died from being shot. In the novel, Long Way Down, Will, the main character, experiences the death of his older brother, Shawn. A day after his death, Will decides to follow the rules, which are no crying, no snitching, and seeking revenge. He takes the elevator, on his way to kill Riggs, the guy that Will thinks killed his brother in order to avenge Shawn.

This next quote shows how young Will still is and adds more to the fact he is questioning The Rules. On page 227 Will says, “The gun pressed against/ the side of my face./ Was the first time I had/ ever had one to my head./ First time I had been that/ close to death. To the end” (227), making us realize that he has never been on the other side of a gun. This makes him worried and plays a factor into his decision to kill or not to kill Riggs. Once you’re on the other side of a gun it makes it harder for your conscience to kill someone.

On page 212, Will’s dad says, “But I didn’t cry. Didn’t snitch./ Knew exactly who killed Mark./ Knew I could get him./ The Rules.” “The Rules” is a term used in the book and is what guides victims into revenge.

During his time studying these boys, he found that most cases of conflict were resolved without the use of weapon(s), but rather with “harsh conversation”. This observation highly contradicts the typical view of gang members who are commonly stereotyped by their local community and justice system in Oakland. Rios describes how the boys “Conversations often involved references to guns as analogies for resolving conflict and demonstrating manhood”. The fact that most conflicts are dealt with in non-violent ways, highlights the negative role

Even though his brother was too deep into drug and gang culture to escape, “[he] wanted Wes to be nothing like him” (72). Yet, Wes was consumed by the, “… same game that had consumed [his brother] and put a bullet or two in him,” and had never known anything in his family outside of drugs and gang violence, so drugs and gangs were the only expectation Wes had, the only place he saw himself fitting into (58). Ultimately, the expectations of those