Professor Jooyoung Lee was interviewed on The Annex, an American academic sociology podcast, to discuss gun control. Speaking to a largely US-based sociology audience, Professor Lee discussed the gun violence policy debate in Canada. In comparison to the United States, Canada remains a relatively safe place. Nonetheless, as rates of violence have gone up in Toronto over the past year, anxiety has arisen about the origins of guns in Canada and a push for a handgun ban. Professor Lee reflects in this podcast on his role as a media expert speaking to the Canadian press about evidence-based solutions that can help reduce gun violence. Professor Lee states that he aims to show the efficacy of policies that eliminate poverty and racism in the labour market, which prevents young people from going down the path of obtaining firearms, joining a gang or other high risk behaviours.
Listen to the full podcast here. Professor Lee begins talking about gun violence at about minute 32.
Professor Lee is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Toronto, a faculty member in the Centre for the Study of the United States, and a Senior Fellow in the Yale University Urban Ethnography Project. His research interests are focused on the ways gun violence transforms the social worlds and health of young Black men in different contexts. His recent work examines how murder transforms families and communities; how we can use videos to enhance research on interaction; and a collaborative SSHRC-funded study with Professor Julian Tanner and Professor Scot Wortley on youth experiences with guns in Toronto.