Talking About Guns with My Teen

Sex and drugs? Nowadays we need frank conversations about survival

This morning I discussed #gunviolence and #gunsafety with my 15-year-old:

Nicky: WTF is going on?

Mookie: People are shooting up schools, houses of worship, grocery stores, doctor’s offices, movie theatres, concerts…

Nicky: How?

Mookie: They buy automatic weapons like AR-15s, sometimes just handguns, tons of ammo, and go for it.

Nicky: Why?

Mookie: Some of the shooters want to kill Black people and Jews, others are angry or depressed and want to take as many with them as possible, still others nobody ever really knows. Their reasons are as unique and awful as the shootings.

Nicky: Am I at risk?

Mookie: Yes.

Nicky: Grrrrrrreat.

Mookie: Just keeping it real. You go to a New York high school. High population density, lots of crazies all around.

Nicky: What should I do?

Mookie: Keep going to school.

Nicky: Thanks.

Mookie: Guns in real life don’t sound like the ones on TV and in the movies. If you hear popping sounds more like…