After the shootings: How communities heal

Another mass shooting has left families devastated and neighborhoods shaken. 

Wednesday morning, a shooting during a worship service at the Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis left two children dead and 18 people injured.

We hear about the violence and the investigation, but what often gets less attention is what comes after — the grief, anger, fear and the long and difficult process of healing. 

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with two therapists and a violence prevention researcher about why this kind of loss is so difficult and what communities can do to support each other.

Guests:

• LaReesa Hooper is a therapist and founder of Therapeace Counseling in St. Paul. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed alcohol and drug counselor. 

• Jillian Peterson is a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Hamline University, director of their forensic psychology program, and executive director of the Violence Prevention Project Research Center at Hamline University.

• Shanelle Wenell is a licensed marriage and family therapist with Therapeace Counseling in St. Paul. She is a licensed associate marriage and family therapist, specializing in helping people heal from trauma, including neglect and abuse as children.

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.