Gun Violence
The Gangs In Our Communities
By: Adam Taylor What set do you claim? Isn’t that a question we all hear at some point in our school years and maybe sometimes even after. Well I remember being in elementary school and not having to worry about nothing but recess. Those were the days of no worries and no stress. Then came middle school and that’s when things begin to change. Middle school is more about who you hang out with and how you dress. That’s where most of it starts. At the level of middle school to the level of adulthood gangs are feared and recognized. The abundance of gangs can bring fear and violence to every block of a city. In addition to suffering unacceptably high numbers of deaths and injuries, gang plagued neighborhoods are overwhelmed by intimidation, economic and physical decay, and withdrawal from civic engagement. As these neighborhoods decline, the bonds that hold communities together weaken: children fear going to school; parks become unusable; shopping and taking a bus to work become dangerous ventures. Community policing may not carry the instant image of gang suppression, but it can build trust among the substantial majority of a neighborhood who are not gang involved, empower those residents and build an alliance in which they help prevent and reduce gang violence. Partnerships with leaders in education, job training, employment, counseling, family support and other services can strengthen options to help residents of a neighborhood, including gang members, address problems they face. Building trust is a critical element in helping gang plagued communities regain their sense of civic pride and local control. Community policing provides a platform to address multiple issues by bringing in appropriate local, state and even national resources, and these neighborhoods typically need all the help they can get to get back on their feet. A bonus of community policing is that it creates the kinds of police-citizen relationships that
By: Adam Taylor What set do you claim? Isn’t that a question we all hear at some point in our school years and maybe sometimes even after. Well I remember being in elementary school and not having to worry about nothing but recess. Those were the days of no worries and no stress. Then came middle school and that’s when things begin to change. Middle school is more about who you hang out with and how you dress. That’s where most of it starts. At the level of middle school to the level of adulthood gangs are feared and recognized. The abundance of gangs can bring fear and violence to every block of a city. In addition to suffering unacceptably high numbers of deaths and injuries, gang plagued neighborhoods are overwhelmed by intimidation, economic and physical decay, and withdrawal from civic engagement. As these neighborhoods decline, the bonds that hold communities together weaken: children fear going to school; parks become unusable; shopping and taking a bus to work become dangerous ventures. Community policing may not carry the instant image of gang suppression, but it can build trust among the substantial majority of a neighborhood who are not gang involved, empower those residents and build an alliance in which they help prevent and reduce gang violence. Partnerships with leaders in education, job training, employment, counseling, family support and other services can strengthen options to help residents of a neighborhood, including gang members, address problems they face. Building trust is a critical element in helping gang plagued communities regain their sense of civic pride and local control. Community policing provides a platform to address multiple issues by bringing in appropriate local, state and even national resources, and these neighborhoods typically need all the help they can get to get back on their feet. A bonus of community policing is that it creates the kinds of police-citizen relationships that