Delshaun, a ConTextos Author and participant in the MAAFA Redemption Project, joins Mariah, Tatiana, and Dimitri to talk about his experiences with Authors Circle and life in Chicago. The MAAFA Redemption Project is a nine-month program focused on improving quality of life for at-risk young adult men through housing, employment, educational opportunities, and social services.

While America’s cities reeled from the COVID-19 pandemic and were gripped by protests against racial injustice and police killings, yet another crisis struck our cities in 2020: gun violence. Although overall crime is trending down this year, shootings and homicides have spiked in cities throughout the summer, predominantly impacting people of color. In several American cities, the number of murders witnessed this year have already surpassed their 2019 levels, with months left to go.

Still, there is hope.

Group Therapy is Saving Lives in Chicago