I came across an article recently that described the relationship of gang membership with suicide attempts. While everyone seems to know about how gang violence increases the amount of homicides on the streets, perhaps more surprising is the its relationship to self-inflicted injury.
It describes a study from the journal of Criminal Justice and Behavior that found that gang members are TWICE as likely to attempt suicide as the normal population. The risks and highly stressful environment of street violence has an enormous affect on those who participate, and the results are extremely tragic.
As we continue in the fight against gun violence, we find that the symptoms we see are so often a terrible summation of past traumas that congeal into a formidable effect of unpredictability and aggression. Intervening in these situations as mediators and therapists gives us the best chance of properly dealing with these issues.