Between 2014 and 2024, the number of children and teens dying by gun violence rose by 68 percent. “Gun violence is definitely relevant to any student today,” Ambre, who got involved with Project Unloaded as a high school student, told The Trace. Akilah Townsend for The TraceNearly half of the teens surveyed said that gun violence negatively affected their mental health. The analysis comes at a time when researchers are voicing their concerns about how social media usage can contribute to gun violence. “You can’t really stay away from [gun violence] as much as people wish that they could.