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Got Shot
"People act differently when somebody pulls a gun on them. Some people talk back...but most of the time, people do what I do, they just freeze."
By Julio Jaquez
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Youth Radio's Julio Jaquez never felt too threatened walking around his neighborhood, until he got shot. Julio reflects on the experience of having a gun held in his face, and explains why he wants to change his ways of thinking and expressing himself. (December 24 on KCBS)
Every day I have to watch my back because there is always some stupid dummy thinking he’s hard, trying to scrape me. Some days on my way home somebody tries to punk me out, but I never let people see my weak side.
But nine months ago, something happened to me that made me change my ways of thinking and expressing myself.
I was walking around in my neighborhood minding my business, and the next thing you know a car pulls up across the street, and the passengers threw up gang signs. I ignored them, but when I turned around to walk away, I felt a pain in my right shoulder. I got shot.
People act differently when somebody pulls a gun on them. Some people talk back...but most of the time, people do what I do, they just freeze.
When the gun is pointed at me I start thinking about how many people are going to miss me. I think about how I’m going to be buried, or how people will remember me. I think about my parents and how they would react if I got shot again or even worse, if I passed away. Other times I tell myself the person standing in front of me is fake: they’re going to talk smack and nothing will happen. Because in real life, I wish it weren’t happening at all.
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