枪击案之后：幸存者的创伤康复与社区治愈之路

Jan Jagenothan: When a shooting happens, we hear about the immediate aftermath. Who was hurt? Where it happened, whether anyone was arrested. But what happens after the headlines move on? No one knows better than Nikkai Foster. In 2023, the 16-year-old was heading home from playing basketball in Toronto's Jane and Finch neighborhood when he was shot in the head, an innocent bystander caught in someone else's feud. Now, his injuries were life-altering, but Nikai survived. And now a new TV original documentary, Nikai Walks, tells the story of his recovery and advocacy.

Nikai's Mother: And I was so fearful. And that fear returned to me in the hospital when he could not stand up on his own.

Jan Jagenothan: We hear from him, dig into the far-reaching effects of violence and how communities are coming together to stop it. I'm Jan Jagenothan. Welcome to the rundown. What is it like to rebuild your life after gun violence? And how do you go about telling that story and the larger story of a community dealing with trauma? Nikkai Foster, Rico King, Devon Jones, great to have you in our studios. Thank you so much for joining me. Um, before we get into things, Nikai, it's great to have you here with us. Three years ago, uh, you were told that potentially potentially you may not be here, that you may not walk, but here you are. I want to know how are you doing today?

Nikai Foster: I'm doing good, man. You know, just started school. I'm here with Mr. Jones and Rico. So, yeah, I can't complain.

Jan Jagenothan: Uh, throughout the dock, there's sort of this journey um, you know, of rehab and the emotion, the pain, the strength. You seem to always have this smile on your face as well. Um how how how difficult uh would you describe sort of that journey from from then to where you are today?

Nikai Foster: You know, it's very difficult to go through what I went through, but when you put a smile on your face, it's easier it's very easy to fight through your battles. You know, when you're running a race with your head down, it's going to be hard to get through it. But if you have your head up and a smile on your face, it's going to be way easier.

Jan Jagenothan: Rico, uh, watching the documentary, there is there's a story of perseverance, it's a story of pain. Uh, but it's pretty obvious shortly into the doc when you meet Nikai, uh, how quickly we fall in love with him. Why was it important for you to tell this story in a documentary format?

Rico King: It was important because it was very unique, you know what I mean? Um and um Nikkai, you know, gave me access to his story, which um it was a miracle, right? Like he survived something that most we thought he wasn't going to survive, but not only surviving, but in good spirits. So to capture the psychological and physical journey was very important to me.

Jan Jagenothan: When did you um hear about sort of the the origins of the story about Nikai?

Rico King: About Nikai? Uh we heard it u me and Devon were visiting him at the hospital like um people always ask me how do I get access to these stories and stuff like that but we're like people in the community, you know what I mean? So Devon said, yo, Nikai got shot, we got to go to the hospital. And we were there by his bedside and Nikai was like, you know, make sure it's in 4k.

Nikai Foster: In 4K for sure, not 1080 is...

Rico King: We don't do 1080.

Jan Jagenothan: What what did it reveal about sort of the role of community uh and and what it plays in helping youth rehab?

Rico King: I mean like we're all we got that's how I always say it you know um we understand the problem more because we live it, you know what I mean? A lot of people talk about it detached from it, but for us, we live it. So we feel like it's a responsibility for us to not only document it, but help, you know, and provide a platform where people can see the full picture, not just the news headline.

Jan Jagenothan: Devon uh you've dedicated uh essentially your life to helping racialized youth um steering them away from violence, building community. How did you first get connected with Nikai, and then uh connecting with Rico to sort of make this come together?

Devon Jones: Well, Nikai I knew uh Rico I met Rico um maybe a few months before actually. Um, we had an idea of wanting to tell these stories in different iterations because we've seen this play out over and over and over. And Rico is a phenomenal filmmaker who comes with a portfolio of having done work across Toronto and in Baltimore,

Jan Jagenothan: And in Baltimore,

Devon Jones: Um the immediate assumption was that he's the guy to help us tell the story.

Jan Jagenothan: Uh Nikki says sort of that Mr. Jones. Yes, sir.

Devon Jones: Yes, sir.

Jan Jagenothan: Level of respect for this man here. Uh how would you describe uh Nikai to people who who don't know him?

Devon Jones: Um because I mean we were there in Sunny Brook. You know I've been sadly enough I've been at Sunnybrook more times than I care to admit, but there is something remarkably incredible about Nikai. This is and you hear the prognosis from the doctor. We might not walk again and you know and he had this energy and resilience.

Devon Jones: He had this aura about him, you know, and like, "Mr. Jones, I got this, I'm going to walk." And he was giving us strength.

Jan Jagenothan: When you talk about uh the people in your life. Uh your mom is is featured heavily in in the doc and and your grandmother as well. Uh what did it take uh for for you to pull strength from them?

Nikai Foster: A lot of it you know my mom was always there for me along with my sister and my father too. My grandmother, everybody, you know, they were that foundation and that backbone for me in the background, you know, helping me to regain strength and getting back to me.

Jan Jagenothan: How important uh was having someone like Devon uh in this you we talk about access uh you know this being unique, but having someone in the community who does the work Devon does and and helps provide this platform for youth?

Nikai Foster: I mean, if it wasn't for Devon, I wouldn't have a documentary, right? You know, he was my community father like a father in my life, you know, in all the years that I've been with him, he's only given me the right direction. So, you know, I'm blessed to be here today.

Jan Jagenothan: Um you know it might be a politician getting credit for crime rate reducing or or there's fewer shootings, but as people working on the ground in the community, does that translate to the actual reality you're seeing in terms of need for services, but also in prevention?

Devon Jones: It all depends where they are on the social continuum.

Devon Jones: You have young people who are there around employment. You have others who are there around, you know, mental health support. Um for us the culture of gun vi of gun violence is is is one that we're very attentive to. Um recently,

Jan Jagenothan: Just recently they arrested 16-year-old.

Devon Jones: Another 16-year-old. Yeah.

Jan Jagenothan: Uh and I understand you you knew Cashy.

Devon Jones: I knew Cashy.

Jan Jagenothan: Where in in the system is this failing? Like for a lot of people when they hear Jane and Finch, you know, they have a preconceived notion. But on the ground, not only with the people that are being impacted in the communities here but in prevention as well.

Devon Jones: Yeah. I mean there's a there's a concept at at YAAACE that our clinical social worker Dr. Nikili is looking at which is the threshold of conflict, right? It's so low. You have social media that is really agitating and exasperating the conditions, right?

Jan Jagenothan: Talking about like just exchanges on on whatever just videos about talking about the shooting.

Devon Jones: Yeah. Or instigating each other where you know someone decides, well, you've disrespected me, so I'm going to shoot at you.

Devon Jones: Right. You know, that's the level of indiscriminate violence that we're dealing with and navigating. And with that kind of level of violence, there's a lot of anxiety um around safety. Some of these young people think they got to take their safety into their own hands, and that alters the the the landscape in those communities.

Jan Jagenothan: Nikai, um you've had to adjust. Yes. To the physical limitations because of the injuries, whether it's mobility. But what pushed you towards advocacy and wanting to tell this story, to be on that path?

Nikai Foster: Okay. When I asked Rico to shoot my documentary in the hospital in 4K, I never really knew what it was going to turn into. I just wanted to document me getting back on my feet. But as we kept going, I realized it was bigger than me. You know, if I could survive and walk again, it could give hope to somebody else. I wanted to show that no matter what happens to you, you can overcome it if you keep pushing.

Jan Jagenothan: I understand you're also doing an internship with Rico as well. Uh, what do what is what is Rico showing you behind the scenes?

Nikai Foster: Rico is showing me a lot, man. Like camera work, lighting, sound, how to edit, how to put the story together. A lot goes into it behind the scenes, you know? It's opened my eyes to a whole new world, and I'm really enjoying learning the craft.

Jan Jagenothan: A lot goes into I'm curious for someone who does doc, you know, who who's in this do in the dock world, did you ever imagine that he would end up doing an internship with you?

Rico King: No, no, no, not at all. Like uh yeah, it was interesting how that happened, right? Um I guess we spent a lot of time together, you know, and um yeah, like um I have a hard time getting people to open up sometimes in docs. But with Nikai and his family, we built a real bond. Um me and her have a lot of conversations. His sister is great, grandma's great. So, and like my family, you know?

Rico King: Very fun. Uh showing him behind the scene work that got, you know, it's amazing to be part of that and watch him learn and grow.

Jan Jagenothan: Yeah.

Jan Jagenothan: You set out to tell the story of one young man's journey, but I am curious, what do you hope people take away, or what did you learn through this process?

Rico King: I learned a lot. You know, I learned I could persevere myself, you know, right? Uh, it was really hard to make this film. It was emotionally heavy. But seeing Nikai smile through it every day motivated me. And I hope people take away that behind every shooting is a human being, a family, and that with the right support from the community, young people can heal and thrive.

Jan Jagenothan: Well, I know this story does not end here. Uh wish you all the best, Nikai. Uh Rico Devon, appreciate your work and coming into studio today.

Nikai Foster: Thank you.

Rico King / Devon Jones: Thank you. Thank you.

Jan Jagenothan: All right.

Jan Jagenothan: Acts of gun violence aren't isolated. They create ripple effects, but the impact on survivors, families, and communities often goes unrecognized. Joining me now is Jooyoung Lee, associate professor of sociology at the University of Toronto. Jooyoung Lee, great to have you in our studios. How you doing?

Jooyoung Lee: I'm great. Thanks for having me.

Jan Jagenothan: Now, I want to talk about uh your latest book uh The Walking Wounded. It's a result of two years of field research in Philadelphia and in Toronto, following the lives of gunshot survivors. And what did we find?

Jooyoung Lee: Um the main thing I found was that one getting shot is kind of a slow drip.

Jooyoung Lee: People live with chronic pain, PTSD, various kinds of disabilities that diminish their quality of life. And they often lack the resources to get long-term physical rehab and mental health support.

Jan Jagenothan: You have a unique advantage uh point uh when it comes to gun violence uh not only with the research you've done, but you lived in Philadelphia and you live in Toronto now. And people might assume that Canada with universal healthcare provides a much better safety net for gunshot survivors. What did you find comparing the two?

Jooyoung Lee: You're not the only one.

Jooyoung Lee: And in many ways it is. Um especially with universal healthcare, but as I investigated more in in Canada, what I realized is that once you get discharged from acute care hospital, there is a cliff when it comes to long-term rehab and care.

Jan Jagenothan: So, what does what does that look like for someone who's who's shot who is a victim of of of gun violence in terms of ongoing support?

Jooyoung Lee: Well, the the short answer is that they don't receive anything. So in Philadelphia, many of the victims without private health insurance or Medicaid couldn't access physical therapy or counseling.

Jooyoung Lee: In Ontario, it's quite similar. Um people unless you have an employer that has really good healthcare benefits or you have money to pay out of pocket, public healthcare (OHIP) covers very little physical therapy, trauma counseling, or assistive devices long term. So young people are often discharged home with their families bearing the entire burden.

Jan Jagenothan: Um I'm going to actually push back a little bit. There was a a program I know run out of Sunnybrook, hospital-based violence intervention. But looking at early stage prevention more broadly across the city, what should that actually look like?

Jooyoung Lee: Uh I mean early stage prevention really looks like

Jooyoung Lee: Identifying the most at-risk neighborhoods, right? If we look at a map of any major city where there is gun violence, shootings are not evenly distributed. They are concentrated in a handful of neighborhoods that have historically faced disinvestment, lack of youth employment, and systemic marginalization. Early prevention means investing heavily in those specific areas—in youth programming, education, employment opportunities, and grassroots community-led intervention.

Jan Jagenothan: One of the things uh that you talk about in your book is language. Uh you use the word victim uh rather than just survivor or other labels in certain contexts, but also the stigma attached to gunshot victims. Why is language so important in how society views them?

Jooyoung Lee: Language matters because society often creates a hierarchy of victimhood based on race, class, and neighborhood. When young Black or racialized men are shot, there is often an immediate suspicion: "Were they involved in something? Did they bring this on themselves?" By examining the language and humanizing their stories, we challenge that harmful stigma and remind society that anyone who is shot is a victim deserving of empathy, dignity, and care.

Jan Jagenothan: I'm curious about when I when I think of a shooting that we recently had seen uh it wasn't that long ago in affluent neighborhoods vs. marginalized neighborhoods. The public outcry and media coverage is night and day. Why is that?

Jooyoung Lee: Well, it's because of the victims, right? It's the identity of the victims. So when shootings happen in affluent, predominantly white neighborhoods, it's treated as a profound tragedy, a breach of safety that demands immediate political response and outrage. But when it happens in marginalized racialized communities, it's normalized as "gang violence," which numbs the public and excuses policymakers from providing real solutions.

Jan Jagenothan: Yeah, I mean I I have through um different people that I've kind of known over the years in communities seen that exact dynamic. Uh you write and you talk about uh the ricocheting through families and neighborhoods. Uh talk to me about what you mean by that ripple effect.

Jooyoung Lee: It has a huge effect. And I think we actually underestimate the impact of gun violence on various communities and families. When a bullet enters a person, it doesn't stop there—it ricochets through their entire social world. Mothers often have to quit their jobs to become full-time caregivers, plunging families into financial ruin. Siblings suffer from secondary trauma, anxiety, and depression. Neighbors live in constant hypervigilance where any loud noise triggers panic. It degrades the collective well-being of the whole neighborhood.

Jan Jagenothan: Talked about health care. Uh, we talked about uh a little bit about education and prevention and and policy. What do you see as the single most critical gap that policymakers need to address right now?

Jooyoung Lee: I think the the biggest one is the lack of long-term mental health care. Modern trauma surgery is incredible at saving lives—surgeons can keep people alive after horrific injuries. But after the hospital discharges them, there is virtually zero accessible, culturally responsive, long-term mental health care for survivors and their families to deal with PTSD, depression, and chronic grief. If we save their physical lives but leave their mental health to deteriorate in isolation, we have only done half the job.

Jan Jagenothan: Jooyoung, we're going to leave it there. I appreciate your insights. Thank you so much for this.

Jooyoung Lee: Thanks for having me. So, what do you think communities need to prevent violence and better support survivors? Share your thoughts below.