Memphis is a city of contradictions. It is a place of deep cultural roots and vibrant history, yet it currently sits atop a “not-so-illustrious list” of danger metrics, from homicide rates to road safety. As violent crime dips nationally, Memphis bucks the trend with sharp increases in almost every category. But numbers on a graph only tell half the story.
To truly understand what is happening on the ground, we took to the streets to hear the raw, unfiltered voices of the locals—the victims, the youth, and the survivors who call this complicated city home.
Overview
We arrived in Memphis to see the situation for ourselves. The atmosphere on the street was immediately intense.
One local resident summed it up the moment we arrived. “People crazy out here right now; got shot multiple time, man,” he told us. “It’s dangerous out here, you guys are strapped, yeah.”
To give you some context: This is Memphis, currently ranked as the most violent city in America. This graph shows the violent crime trend dating back nearly 40 years. The last few years have been the most violent in the city’s history. While violent crime in America generally decreased 6%, Memphis’s violent crimes rose 7%; robberies rose 20%; rapes rose 41%; and murders rose 34%, breaking Memphis’s own homicide record again.
Voices from the Street
Daytime and Nighttime Safety
While walking the streets, we approached a man who appeared to be in a rough state. We tried to gauge his condition.
“Are you on any drugs today?” we asked him.
“Yeah. Yeah,” he nodded. But then, he suddenly shifted the conversation from his condition to his physical scars. “I got shot my my own… I got shot D side back,” he said, lifting his shirt. “I didn’t expect that so many people to get shot. Got shot for funny, funny — you just walk over to the store, come out, you get hit.”
We continued walking, trying to understand how people navigate this environment daily.
Another resident explained his philosophy to us: “This city is as safe or as dangerous as you make it. I mean you don’t go where you don’t belong.”
We explained to him that we were trying to ask families if they felt safe in Downtown Memphis.
“Most times kind of sort of no,” he admitted. “I’m just saying I don’t go places I got no business being, you know, belong in Downtown Memphis. I didn’t say that I’m here aren’t I anyone should be fine right here.”
“Yeah, that would be my expectation,” I replied.
“Statistically, apparently not the case,” he concluded.
Perception vs. Statistics
Later, we encountered a man who strongly disagreed with the data we presented. He felt the media was exaggerating the danger.
“Statistics are nonsense,” he declared. “There’s lies, damn lies, and statistics, brother. It’s easy with all the fearmongering.”
“How’s that fearmongering?” I asked.
“It’s very simple,” he argued. “You’re asking me about murders and if I feel safe, say you feel safe.”
“I do,” I told him. “I told you I absolutely do.”
“But then I walked away and you said something as safe as you—”
“I do,” I repeated.
He smiled and walked off, calling back, “The city is as safe or as dangerous as you make it. Enjoy your trip. Thank you. Stay safe.”
Youth, Weapons, and Normalization
We moved to a gas station near a school area and saw a group of young teenagers. The situation took a disturbing turn when we realized what they were carrying.
One of the boys spoke up. “I mean, around certain areas like we try to avoid. This place is a mess. I’m carrying a gun, so if that tells you anything.”
I told them that this kind of fearmongering stuff is no good for people, and offered to blur their faces or eyes to protect their identity.
“All stuff, yeah,” the boy said, confirming the danger. “You guys are strapped, yeah, legit.”
“How old are you?” I asked.
“I’m 13,” he replied. “13, I’m going to be 14. 14, 14.”
“Okay man, you guys are strapped, that’s crazy,” I said, shocked. “Have you guys had friends die out here?”
“Yeah, I did plenty of folks,” the 13-year-old said nonchalantly. “I shot in the chest but they really think I shot him. They think you killed your cousin.”
I asked him what the craziest thing he had seen out here was.
“Somebody got shot in front of me, got shot,” he said. “That funny, funny how he died.”
With prepubescent 13-year-old squeakers rolling around with junk and guns outside of a gas station during school hours, it’s no surprise violence is so frequent out here.
Driving, Speeding, and Road Danger
It isn’t just gun violence; the roads themselves felt lawless.
Memphis also ranks number one when it comes to car-related fatalities. Memphis sits at the top of a not-so-illustrious list: most dangerous city in America for drivers. One out of every five deadly crashes in Memphis is caused by speeding. No other city even comes close to that statistic.
As one local noted while watching the traffic, “There are some terrible drivers out here, I got to say. We’ve seen a uniquely disproportionate amount of messed up vehicles on the side of the road relative to the amount of cars.”
Underground Economy: Sex Work and the Truck Route
We headed to Lamar and American Way, a street notorious for prostitution, to see if we could chat with the locals involved in the trade.
Our local guide pointed toward the road. “They sell a lot of sex, a lot of drugs. You see all the 18 wheelers right here; they buy — that’s why they’re on the M because truck drivers come. Memphis is a distribution hub so it’s a lot of 18 wheelers and truck drivers come through this city. They stop on Lamar; they want to buy services. If they don’t want to buy sex, they don’t stop on Lamar.”
We managed to speak to a man on the corner who claimed to manage women in the area.
“Pimping is real out here, man,” I said to him. “How long you been a pimp?”
He laughed. “Well you know I’ve been doing this since Moby D— was a goldfish, man. Pimping is real out here. I never give up. This a real ball game.”
Community Perspectives and Tension
Away from the nightlife, we spoke to residents who feel trapped between the criminals and the authorities.
“I do not feel safe,” a resident confessed to us. “I feel that actually the police force is against us and so are the criminals. We’re not allowed to park here; we get ticketed. If we park across the street our windows get bashed in. I used to love Memphis but I don’t go out at night anymore. We can’t protect ourselves because it’s just — there’s a narrative there that I’d rather not say. Racial tension involved in the enforcement of narrative because the kids are running wild trying to find guns and their solution to everything is shooting people.”
I asked when they noticed that shift in conflict resolution or lack thereof.
“It was definitely during Covid and Black Lives Matter came and it was a narrative of racism — all white people are racist — and you know that’s not true,” the resident explained. “Call the races out here four times in one month.”
Personal Stories: Shots and Survival
As we talked to more people, it seemed like almost everyone had a story about being caught in the crossfire.
One victim recounted his trauma: “I got shot four time. I got shot my arm, I got shot stomach side back. I nearly died. Two, three weeks people get shot out here for no reason. You can just be out here like we in now pop off — people crazy out here right now. I don’t know what they put in there but it’s crazy. They put something in the [weed/water] or something.”
Another local shared a similar story. “I got shot, multiple time, man. It’s dangerous out here. Shot too.”
“Where’d you get shot?” I asked.
“I got shot the side, man. You don’t see this man? Let me show you something,” he said, gesturing to his injuries.
“I didn’t expect that so many people get shot,” I remarked. “Did you nearly die?”
“Yeah, I seen you man,” he replied. “Two, three weeks people get shot out here for no reason.”
Attempts at Solutions and the Debate on Enforcement
We looked into what the local government is doing to stop this.
The police chief Davis says they’ll achieve a safer Memphis through not so much enforcement, not so much prosecutions in court, but by improving the quality of life in certain neighborhoods that have young people that need other resources that the police department quite frankly can’t provide for them. In addition, the mayor alleged he met up with quote-unquote “high-ranking gang leaders” in the city and negotiated a 7-day ceasefire where allegedly the gangs, in response, asked for more neighborhood investments and job options for young people.
I’ll be honest: this sounds like complete made-up nonsense, and I personally do not believe these Memphis gangs operate in a defined hierarchical structure with one individual leader. It seems like they’re acting as cliques and crews rather than the old-school Mafia with large corporate-like organized structures.
Here’s an idea for Memphis: treat criminals like criminals. Arrest and prosecute. Create an environment where criminal behavior is deterred and punished rather than excused. I think there’s hope for Memphis; change has to happen.
A recent case
A few days after editing this, an 18-year-old who was charged with felony car theft and unlawful gun possession was released without bail and later went on to shoot and kill 26-year-old Memphis police officer Joseph McKin. A world with laws that are merely suggestions, and without enforcement and prosecution, is a world with chaos, without order, and mutual human respect.
Conclusion
Memphis is a city with deep contradictions: proud communities and entrenched problems. People described the city as dangerous, many showed scars—both physical and emotional—and daily life for some means avoiding certain places and carrying protection. Others argue that perception and statistics are separate things, and that life in Memphis can be as safe or as dangerous as you make it.