Criminologists say police stepping back and community's growing distrust of the cops both played a role in fueling the gun violent spike. This distrust, it can help fuel a cycle of retaliation that can be nearly impossible to stop. Some one sees a friend or family member get shot, they don't see the police as an option so they take matters into their own hands. They get revenge that crew retaliates in return. A lot of this now plays out on social media, ramping up the tension, on and on it goes.
America's homicide rate rose by almost 30 percent in 2020. It was the biggest spike in 60 years, and the murder rate was even higher in 2021. In this repodcast, ProPublica’s Alec MacGillis explains what might be causing “The Great Regression."
Today’s show was reported and produced by Miles Bryan, Jillian Weinberger, and Alec MacGillis, with editing help from Matt Collette, engineered by Efim Shapiro, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, and hosted by Sean Rameswaram.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained
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