New data uncovered by the Turn To Tara team reveals a significant racial divide in how gun violence is impacting young people across the tri-state.

Nearly 800 children and teens were killed by gunfire across New York, New Jersey and Connecticut between 2018 and 2023, according to the CDC - and the rates of death varied dramatically by race and ethnicity.

The nonprofit newsroom The Trace dug deeper and found young Black residents had the highest homicide rate - 6.2 per 100,000. At the same time, nearly 80% of youth suicides involved white teens.

The data also showed nearly 87% of youth gun deaths in the tri-state involved males. And when it comes to geography, counties like Camden in New Jersey and the Bronx stood out with the highest rates.

"Just in terms of the number of deaths, we see that the majority of them were of Black people in the tri-state area, over 425 gun deaths," says Aaron Mendelson, of The Trace. "Unfortunately, it's not shocking to see this high number for young residents in the tri-state area, but it really emphasizes the degree to which this is an issue that affects Black communities in particular."

What did come as a surprise was that several thousand tri-state shootings took place within 500 yards of K-12 schools over the past decade.

"There are cases where students can see evidence of these shootings. Sometimes they happen while school is in session. So, these are not school shootings. These are school shootings that happen adjacent to schools, but they're really shockingly common in our society," says Mendelson.

The Trace calls this a public health crisis and says the solution requires investment in community safety, mental health and youth intervention programs.