What if everything we understood about gun violence was wrong? In 2007, economist Jens Ludwig moved to the South Side of Chicago to research two big questions: Why does gun violence happen, and is there anything we can do about it? Almost two decades later, the answers aren-t what he expected. Unforgiving Places is Ludwig-s revelatory portrait of gun violence in America-s most famously maligned city. Disproving the popular narrative that shootings are the calculated acts of malicious or desperate people, Ludwig shows how most shootings actually grow out of a more fleeting source: interpersonal conflict, especially arguments. By examining why some arguments turn tragic while others don't, Ludwig shows gun violence to be more circumstantial-and more solvable-than our traditional approaches lead us to believe. Drawing on decades of research and Ludwig-s immersive fieldwork in Chicago, including -countless hours spent in schools, parks, playgrounds, housing developments, courtrooms, jails,
