Children living in communities affected by violence often experience emotional problems, including anxiety, depression, as well as behavioral problems, such as hostility and aggression. Youth may also develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which may include feeling as if the traumatic event is happening again (e.g., nightmares, flashbacks or intrusive thoughts), being easily startled or jumpy, and avoiding thoughts, feelings, images or places that remind them of what happened. Community violence exposure also has a considerable impact on families and entire communities.
To learn what you can do to prevent violence and support youth, participate in our campaign
On April 1, 2016, The Urban Youth Trauma Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Institute for Juvenile Research launched its ‘If Youth Can, then I Can’ Violence Prevention Campaign
The goals of this campaign are
To Raise Awareness about the negative impacts of community violence on youth, families, and entire communities.
To Educate the public about the risk factors and strategies that support resilience in youth, families, and communities.
To Engage youth, families and community members in the process of working together to address the complexities of Community Violence.
Post your pledge to Instagram or Twitter with #IfYouthCan, and tag us @UYTC_Chicago.
To post to Facebook, like our page, and tag us in a public post to with #IfYouthCan
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