#BHeard Docs | The Damage Done: Gun Violence in Brooklyn

As COVID has turned life upside down for the better part of two years, a surge in gun violence has kept pace, adding to the city’s trauma. This documentary series – created in partnership with The Trace, a nationally recognized online newsroom solely dedicated to all things related to gun violence – takes an intimate view of both the painful impact and the ways people try to heal and fight to prevent further damage.

Beginning not long after COVID hit, a second pandemic -- of gun violence -- swept many parts of the country. Rates of shootings and fatalities soared; New York City, and Brooklyn, were no exceptions. As the NY Times wrote, “As December drew to a close, New York’s 447 homicides made 2020 the city’s bloodiest year in nearly a decade.” While 2021 showed something of a drop-off in shootings and gun-related homicides, the numbers were still higher than before COVID.  The prevalence of guns and gun violence in America has deep roots in our culture and history, and broadly speaking, the causes -- poverty, inequality, racism, community displacement, joblessness, homelessness -- were exacerbated by our two-year-long national health and economic crisis. 

We are working in partnership with The Trace, a highly respected Brooklyn-based non-profit online newsroom which focuses solely on the cultural, criminal, and policy aspects of gun ownership and gun violence across America. Along with reporting, research, and referrals, The Trace will produce several articles that will add depth and context to the issues explored in this series.

Stay tuned for the companion podcast version, created by BRIC TV’s Brooklyn USA team