Punishing Fear: The Devastating Impact of the War on Gun Possession in Chicago | October 2024

Punishing Fear explains how the mounting public pressure to stop gun violence has ineffectively targeted survivors of violence who carry guns for protection. The report analyzes the political and social realities that have led to the hypercriminalization of gun possession in Chicago—the “War on Guns,” which parallels the historic War on Drugs and has similarly devastated Black and Brown communities.