Latest Issue
This issue of Peace Policy looks at Gun Violence in America, with a particular focus on the City of South Bend, home to the University of Notre Dame. With gun violence rates on par with some of the most violent neighborhoods in Chicago, the South Bend community is struggling.
Since January 1, 2023, there have been approximately 70 mass shootings in the US according to the Gun Violence Archive. In South Bend, Indiana, there were 124 reported victims of gun violence in 2022 according to city government reports. We are facing an epidemic of gun violence in the US. The Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies is committed to keeping our eyes on local violence as well as global wars in Ukraine and Afghanistan.The essays in this issue will highlight the human cost of this violence, as well as some of the efforts being made to address the problem, both locally and nationally.
We hope that these three short essays can draw attention to a complex problem and spark a conversation about how both the individuals, and the institutions, in our community can work together to fight injustice and build a lasting peace in South Bend, and beyond.
Guest Editor for this issue: Veronica Vos (B.A. ’12), Research Associate at the Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities (LEO), University of Notre Dame
Take Ten: The Struggles and Strategies for Building Peace in South Bend
News features across the United States scream of gun violence on an all-too-frequent basis. The stereotypical images of gun violence were once gang-related shootouts or drug deals gone wrong. Now they are school shootings. Grocery store shootings. Synagogue shootings. Seemingly safe spaces have become scenes of gun violence. Big cities and small communities are not exempt, and this includes South Bend, Indiana.
As Students (and Nation) Demand Action, Notre Dame Democrats Go to DC
Gun violence has become ubiquitous in the United States; when you mention a recent mass shooting, you need to clarify which one. How does our country allow for this? What kind of a country fails to provide the most basic of all needs – security?
Let’s Turn It Around: Breaking the Cycle of Violence, Together
It is said that guns don’t kill people. Tell that to the thousands of family members, not only in our community but across the country, that have watched a loved one suffer or have buried a loved one as a result of gun violence. And the worst part is, the ripple effect goes on and on. No one wins.
who we are
Research-based insights, commentary, and solutions to the global challenge of conflict and systemic violence
our scope
Searching for Policy Solutions to Pressing Global Issues
Each issue features the writing of scholars and practitioners who work to understand the causes of violent conflict and systemic violence and who seek to contribute solutions in service of building more just and peaceful societies.
Intersectionality
Civil Society Peacebuilding
Religion
Counterterrorism
Sanctions
Genocide
Development
Peace Agreements
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Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies
University of Notre Dame
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Notre Dame, IN 46556