Perilous Lens: Guns in an Urban Landscape
Three-year-old Esperanza named her lame pet pigeon after her wheelchair-bound teenage uncle.

Los Angeles
1994

Three-year-old Esperanza named her lame pet pigeon after her wheelchair-bound teenage uncle. He was shot by a rival gang member in a drive-by shooting. The handgun belongs to her 15-year-old uncle, who keeps it for self-defence even though he has begun a process of physical and emotional therapy to help him manage his paralysis and desires for revenge.

Gang members prepare to defend their turf from paramilitaries
Like most of Medllin's barrios, this one is controlled by gangs
 Three-year-old Esperanza
A member of the 18th Street Gang lies dead, gunned down by a rival gang member.
The 18th Street Gang decides on punishment
Funeral