ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – There’s been a lot of talk lately about teens with guns in our state. City leaders are pushing lawmakers to help find ways to stop the insanity and violence. 

On Wednesday, Albuquerque police are putting pressure on another group to intervene – parents. 

The department posted online, urging families to be more involved with their children and teens, especially concerning social media. 

“Share a message of caution and education based on trends we’ve seen in the City of Albuquerque,” APD Commander Jeff Barnard on Instagram.

Barnard released a video on the department’s Instagram account, saying the app and others can take kids down the wrong path.

“It’s easy as a youth to not understand how permanent the consequences of something can be,” said Barnard. 

He points to Instagram and Telegram as marketplaces for illegal guns and drugs. He says kids use emojis to secretly communicate purchases.

“The squirt gun we’ll see that one used a lot for the purchase of an actual firearm,” Barnard said. “The snow emoji for cocaine. Brown heart for heroin.” 

Barnard also warns about trending videos, showing kids how to steal cars. He wants parents to know where their kids are hanging out.

He says downtown Albuquerque has been a hot spot for dangerous gatherings lately, often organized through social media.

“Unfortunately, we have some bad confrontations there that start out pretty simple then somebody using a firearm and having pretty devastating consequences,” said Barnard. 

Monitoring your kids’ online life can feel like a lot of pressure, and perhaps you don’t know where to start? 

Elissa Chazdon says there are ways to be successful.

“We can do that by offering choices, do you think you’d like to be on social media for 30 minutes or 45 minutes a day?” said Elissa Chazdon, owner of Relationship Works. 

Chazdon has been teaching parenting classes at Relationship Works for 16 years. Nowadays, a lot of talk is focused on technology. 

“We have social media in the faces of our kids. Social media runs on an algorithm, shows kids lots of different things. Then, once it learns what kids are somewhat interested in, it can lead them down into a path that’s a bit more extreme,” said Chazdon. 

But it all starts with a healthy relationship and conversations. 

“Creating time with your kids that’s non-judgmental, don’t lecture and ask questions, be interested. Stay involved,” Chazdon said. 

Barnard agrees, which is why he put out that video in the first place. He believes parents can make all the difference.

“Inevitably kids are going to go through some things and make questionable decisions at times just because it’s part of growing up, but if they can turn to somebody and have those conversations, hopefully they can get help before it gets to a really bad place,” said Barnard. 

If you want to learn more about how to communicate with your teens about social media or really anything, Chazdon offers classes for parents. Click here for more information.