Speakers: Phil Andrew, Director, Archdiocese of Chicago’s Violence Prevention Initiatives; retired FBI Special Agent; 1988 Winnetka gun violence survivor.

Malcolm Gibson and Rie’onna Holman, Ambassadors of B.R.A.V.E. (Bold Resistance Against Violence Everywhere) Youth Leaders, based at St. Sabina Church, Chicago

Marcus Campbell, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent/Principal, Evanston Township High School

In January, 2018, FAN launched a new teen initiative called “FAN Fellows,” a pilot group of sixteen high school juniors from four area schools collaborating on the concept and execution of a FAN program. In the wake of the gun violence that has encompassed our country this year, the FAN Fellows have decided to host an intersectional discussion on the topic, which will feature Malcolm Gibson and Rie’onna Holman, two 15-year-old ambassadors from B.R.A.V.E Youth Leaders (based at St. Sabina Church in Chicago) and Phil Andrew, the leader of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Violence Prevention Initiatives. Mr. Andrew recently retired from the FBI after 20+ years of service, and he is a survivor of gun violence himself stemming from a 1988 incident in Winnetka. The discussion will be moderated by Marcus Campbell, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent/Principal at Evanston Township High School, who also interviewed author Ta-Nehisi Coates for FAN last October.

B.R.A.V.E Youth Leaders (“Bold Resistance Against Violence Everywhere”) is a youth organization specializing in peer led initiatives aimed to develop leaders and agents of social justice. Leaders are trained in the areas of public speaking, advocacy, and peer support with the intent to elicit passion in other youth to extend the bridge between violence that continually devastates the city of Chicago, the disconnected youth living in the suburbs of Chicago, and those affected by gun violence in the suburbs of Chicago who are silenced. Recently, B.R.A.V.E leaders have been featured in a documentary on violence by Katie Couric, and spoke in Washington, D.C. for The March for Our Lives rally, addressing “Every Day Shootings are Everyday Problems.”

Mr. Andrew brings unique, multiple perspectives to the discussion. A former FBI Special Agent, he served as an instructor at the FBI Academy as an expert in crisis management negotiation, behavior analysis, and undercover work. In his work with the Archdiocese, Mr. Andrew is responsible for all aspects of safety, programs, and partnerships. His personal story of being a survivor of gun violence in his parents’ Winnetka home at age 20, and subsequent path of resilience and growth, is deeply inspirational.