This paper presents two premises regarding school violence in urban America. First, that traumatic stress among urban youth in the United States is a key factor in the development and exacerbation of school violence in urban areas. Secondly, an efficacious approach to the resolution of school violence cannot be achieved without addressing this factor. This discourse explores these two premises within the context of two phenomena. The first phenomenon is the development of traumatic stress as a consequence of the lack of social justice in urban areas, which promotes a culture of poverty and subsequent increased exposure to violence and maltreatment among youth. The second is that such increased exposure to violence fosters the vulnerability of youth to engage in aggressive and violent behaviors in the school setting. Interrelated concepts of economic inequality, maltreatment and violence, traumatic stress theory, childhood development, attachment theory and risk and protective factors will be included in this discourse.