Lauren London is reflecting on the many ways gun violence has impacted her life. A year after her longtime partner Nipsey Hussle was fatally shot in South Los Angeles, London joined Jada Pinkett Smith on a new episode of Red Table Talk where they discussed gun violence in America.
The episode of the Facebook Watch talkshow series -- which also features activist Erica Ford and two survivors of gun violence, Rain Stippec and Dani Robinson -- delved into the ubiquitous presence of guns in the lives of so many Americans.
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"Just growing up in LA, in the area that I was around," London said, when asked when she was first affected by gun violence in her life. "In high school, a lot of the boys were in gangs, and I remember that a lot of our friends, by summertime they were gone. They had transitioned from gun violence."
"So you kind of got -- I don’t want to say numb, but used to hearing it," London added, as Pinkett Smith shared similar memories, and they reflected on how even at high school parties you always "knew where the exit was," as London explained.
"That’s traumatizing," London said. "To be 16 years old and having to be on guard when you go into a party."
The episode was recorded earlier this year, before social distancing mandates due to the coronavirus crisis were enacted in Los Angeles, and long before the worldwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism that were sparked by the killing of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis.
However, London still shared a poignant detail about what she's had to teach her sons -- 10-year-old Kameron, whom she shares with her ex, Lil Wayne, and 3-year-old Kross, whom she welcomed with Hussle in August 2016 -- about staying safe from violence.
"What I instill in them is more about the police," London said. "How to handle yourself when you get pulled over. That’s more of my education, protecting them being black men in America."
The episode was also recorded a year after Hussle was gunned down outside his Marathon Clothing store in South L.A., and London said she is still in awe of the impact his life and legacy has had.
"I love to meet people that Nip has really inspired, because it feels like he’s still here – even though he is in a way," she shared. "He’s touching people still, and I find that when I run into people that tell me how he’s changed their lives, what they’re doing with their life right now, like, it fills me up."
"He would have loved to hear that, you know?” London added.
For more on Hussle's life and his impact, see the video below.
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