Season 4: Episode 12

• Black History Month, Channels, HerFIGHT, Podcasts, Trending Now
• Community Responsibility and Law Enforcement
• 2021

The black community is beginning to unlearn our bad habits and solve our own problems without police interference or the use of firearms. As part of the limited six-part series finale on Gun Violence, hosts Tamika and Mysonne speak to the former police chief of the NYPD, Phillip Banks III, and gun violence survivor turned documentarian Samson Styles on how communities and individuals can communicate their problems and squash the beef. Former NYPD Chief Phillip Banks III describes how if the NYPD spent more time listening to communities about prevention and addressing the criticisms they’ve received from activists, he thinks New York would be in a different place regarding gun violence. As a result, we might not be seeing the 55% surge in gun violence. Samson Styles discusses his history of being on both sides of a gun and how it changed his life and perspective. Samson has survived being shot five times and later went on to forgive and work with his shooter to educate younger generations on the importance of solving our problems before it gets to the point of violence. His new documentary “Killing the Beef” follows his story of forgiveness and acceptance as both himself and his assailant move forward in the aftermath of the shooting, hoping to prevent others. In this series finale, we examine the responsibility of law enforcement and the role communities play when it comes to gun prevention.