When Scars Don’t Heal – Millenial Influx

The massive amount of homicides in Chicago have given the city a new nickname, Chiraq—derived from the fact that more people were killed in Chicago than soldiers in Iraq in 2008.

Stephen Watts

Chicago has a problem with gun violence. That much is self-evident when the city’s worst neighborhoods have higher murder rates than any country in the world. The massive amount of homicides in Chicago have given the city a new nickname, Chiraq—derived from the fact that more people were killed in Chicago than soldiers in Iraq in 2008. If this problem is ever to be solved, we must recognize that this issue is more complex than murderers seeking to harm others. Instead, this is an issue that encapsulates problems that have been dominating the 2016 election such as racism, economic inequality, and gun control.

Gang activity is a major cause of the homicides in Chicago. However, many would argue that the cause of gang activity is racism. As the Black Lives Matter Movement has made clear, African-Americans and other minorities across the country do not feel that they are being served by law enforcement. Instead, they feel that the system is structured in a way that’s meant to oppress them. This has created a power void that is filled by gangs, which many people see as the only economic opportunity available. In this way, gang activity has taken a hold in Chicago in a way it hasn’t in any other American city.

The writers at Millennial Influx were able to interview a couple who is sadly all too familiar with gun violence in Chicago, as they give insights on the roots of Chicago’s sky-high murder rates and the trauma. To read more about gun violence in Chicago, visit our digital news project, When Scars Don’t Heal.

MikeSpeaking InterviewGroup

Homeschooler in the Real World

Emma Folts, a sophomore at Wheaton College, shares her experience about her transition into college and how homeschool has both helped and hindered her.
How has your homeschool experience benefitted you, especially in your transition into college?
I think the one thing that homeschooling did that was really helpful as I entered college was that it taught me time management. As a homeschooler I had the same freedom as a college student has to put things off during the day and go see a friend instead. Since I had that experience, I knew the cost of that.
Also, personal responsibility and accountability with assignments. I feel like a lot of the other students had more expectations for gentler grading and that the professor would give them retakes or extensions, but that wasn’t something that ever happened to me in school. That learning curve wasn’t added because I never had it the other way. I think another thing was that because I was homeschooled, I was familiar with the format of teaching and then studying on my own.
Did you see any issues with your transition socially?
I think that homeschooling had two ramifications for me socially. One was helpful, one was hurtful.
It was really helpful because as a homeschooler, I had spent a lot of time realizing and developing who I was as a person and learning to recognize people who were being themselves, and those were the people I sought out as friends. Friendship as a homeschooler takes a lot more investment. I knew I was choosier with my friends which made me a lot less anxious and a lot more content.
The only real negative impact of the social bit was that I was really used to getting to choose the time I got to spend with people. As a homeschooler I spent a lot of time with people, but that time was controlled by me. As a college student, I found that you can’t really control the time you spend with people and alone time is not really available. Learning to deal with that was a lot harder than anticipated.
Any last comments on homeschool and how it has affected your college experience?
I think homeschooling is really helpful, however it does take a slightly increased amount of advocacy with your peers when you’re entering into college. I think a lot of people come in with certain assumptions about homeschool, especially students. You’re going to get a lot of, ‘oh my gosh, you don’t seem like a homeschooled person!’ [You can’t] take that too personally and explain your experience so that friends can understand it’s an important piece of you, though it might not look like the homeschooling that they’ve seen.
My encouragement to anyone who is a homeschooler transitioning into college is to realize the benefit that you have having been homeschooled, and to realize that the bit of advocacy and explaining that you need to do with your peers is totally normal and that it’s not a big deal. Once they understand your experience, it’s not something I’ve experienced being looked down on for.