Chicago
Credit: Luke M. Schierholz (http://www.flickr.com/photos/morningmagician) | ©Luke M. Schierholz (http://www.flickr.com/photos/morningmagician)
Recent Chicago Shootings Highlight Area's Growing Crime Problem
In April 2008, approximately 40 people were shot, and 12 people died, in Chicago. The worst part about it is that most of the killings happened in one weekend; 36 people were shot and 9 were murdered. Most of the shootings were from stolen guns and assault weapons. The majority of the shooters young men (black and Latino) who were younger than 21, and there were even fights with people being hit with bats.
Since then, Mayor Daley has fired the Truancy Department of the Chicago Public Schools, and Chicago police are now being given high-powered M4 carbine assault rifles. Apparently in high-crime areas, gangs and violent young people have acquired weapons more powerful than the police department's firearms. Mayor Daley believes that police are "outgunned" in these areas and that police should be able to match up with criminals.
While I do agree that the violence in Chicago, especially on the southside, was ridiculous during my own childhood, it's even worse now. According to the Chicago Defender, "the first three months of this year had 87 homicides, one less than a year ago." Segments of Chicago will have the S.W.A.T. (Special Weapons and Tactics) team and helicopters flying around. Because the police are even more heavily armed and in high crime areas, crime has calmed down slightly, but residents have mixed feelings. While some are relieved that their areas are now safer and they don't hear guns at night, others realize that in a high crime area, police are even more on edge than usual.
- Approximately 36 people were shot and 9 people died in Chicago during April.
- Majority of the shooting was in one weekend--April 18-April 20.
- Police officers are allowed to have M4s.
Comments
Bbrock1313, I'm going to go with police. Police are trained to kill. Gangs don't have that type of training, not to mention the people who join gangs out of torture or to avoid being picked on. Police become police out of free will instead of safety. As for the Jesse Jackson comments, who said those? It wasn't me.
BBROCK1313
(Guest)
(Guest)
07/04/2008
When are people going to get off the "Jessie Jackson Everybody Blame The White Man" mentality and get on the "Bill Cosby We Need To Take Responsibility" band wagon. The one ingridient blacks never put into the mix are the parents of all these animals running the streets.
I live and work on the southside of Chicago and its sad to see all these kids just hanging in packs on the corners. Groups of kids as young as five and six just roaming the streets. I know where my kids are (all five of them) are and what they are doing at all times. I always have them part of some orginized program. Some cost but most are free (yes, the city has tons of free programs for kids in the summer) It takes a bit of EFFORT to find them but it's worth it. I constantly talk to my kids about what's going on in there lives and what influences they might encounter out in the streets. If you dress like a gang member or hooker, you will be treated like a gang member or hooker. Gangs or police: Who has shot more.
I was listening to the radio this weekend to a young new rapper named Young Berg (the one who raps on Ray J.'s "Sexy Can I?"), and he was saying that he wishes young people would take all that aggression that they have on each other out on the government. Instead of killing each other, make some change. I really respected dude for saying that. Usually you get music artists on the radio who can't talk about anything past materialistic topics, but Young Berg seemed sincere. My mother told me today that three guys were shot randomly during a drive-by this past weekend. For a long time, Chicago gangs had really calmed down. I have no idea what sparked the problems again, but I feel like I'm in elementary school all over again, and I'm dead tired of folks getting killed over nothing. However, I think taking away Ceasefire was a huge mistake. Not only do they eliminate gang violence, but they get guys who never wanted to be in a gang out who only joined for protection.
They also had the riot squad during the Grand Prix when trouble started over a punk rocker concert. Conflicting eye witness accounts on that one. The crowd was turned away due to the area being "sold out" (an outdoor event, so I say 'area' not venue, capacity full). The youngsters tried to get in anyway and started throwing stuff at the police who the security guards had called for help. A police officer was seen using excessive force on an older man. I have mixed emotions about Long Beach's finest. Some of them are the way Peace officers should be. But I have seen and dealt with others who are not.
Crime is on the rise in Long Beach too. We started New Years day with 3 murders. I have not been able to locate the exact stats; did not hold on to the news articles as these murders were happening. Most all gang related. Never saw why a mother of three was burned beyond being able to identify if she was male or female. In that case, I do suspect her husband. Two transients were killed in Long Beach and two more in L..A. county in two weeks time. Gang violence and activity in Long Beach had been on the decline. Part of the rise is the Mexican Mafia who began random killings to enforce payments of taxes to them from rival gangs. One member started a small riot in L.A. jail just to show he could control. This forces students to join a gang for protection. A cop just killed a man who was "acting crazy". When onlookers advanced on the police the riot squad was called in.
Deez: There are some good ideas on that question in "Freedom Writers Diary". I think change needs to start from the top down in this matter. Our youth see the way to solve global issues is with war and killing. Why expect them to be better than adults? Many of our elected officials have profited from drug running. A call to certain military has eyes turned as drugs are transported to our country from, oh Vietnam, and without users there will be no profits. The users are created from the very rich who have money to burn and the very poor looking to escape problems and also seeing it as better than working for minimum wage at dead end jobs. Something like that. There is no easy fix, but it starts with fixing other problems first.
Hey Connie, in the May 21-27 issue of the "Chicago Defender," Governor Rod Blagojevich pulled the $6.2 million for the Chicago Project for Violence Prevention's Ceasefire anti-violence program even though this is the only organization that has a proven track record of stopping violence. People who try to get out of gangs use CeaseFire. That's disappointing that the funds weren't there, but yet, we still have the funds to kill women, children, and innocent bystanders in the Middle East. Amazing how the government works. (I'm guessing AC isn't going to give me any slack on my mistake with Governor Ryan versus Mayor Daley. *sigh*)
Deez, I cringe every time I look at this article now that I see that Governor Ryan/Mayor Daley mistake. I hope AC is willing to correct that. As for what to do about the situation, see, this is where that foggy line is. Although I am glad that there is some kind of protection in these communities, the answer is simple. I need cops to STOP being criminals. If police officers really did stop harassing innocent people, and i didn't keep seeing situations like the three men in Philadelphia (http://www.chicagodefender.com/view.php?I=856) who were jumped by 12 police officers even though they were unarmed, I would have more faith in the criminal justice system. But officers are acting like the same gangs that are destroying lives in Chicago, and it's really frustrating. I would LOVE to have faith in police, but I simply just do not.
What is the solution Shamontiel? How do we reach the kids/criminals/gangsters? How do we make a change for the better? That's the million dollar question isn't it? How do we protect the innocent? How do we (Officers) protect and serve without, (seeing what we see, hearing what we hear, day in and day out) becoming numb to the humanity of the criminal? If you figure any of these questions out please tell me! Great article (despite the mistake). Crime of this magnitude just baffles the mind and the reasons behind the crime...well let's just say...I fear are way to complex for anyone to fix. However bleak it seems we must draw that line and continue to defend it or all hope is lost.
Connie, just an FYI, even though it was draining, I did read it, and as soon as somebody asks me for the millionth time why I come down so hard on police, I'm going to link them to your article (http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/674785/death_by_taser_or_dont_tase_me_bro.html). It's hard for me to think of officers as the good guys when this is how they act. People keep acting like it's only one random cop who acts like this. There are so many of them who are drunk with power, and it blurs the line between the good guys and the bad guys. I'm more comfortable around the guys that cops PURSUE in these neighborhoods than I am the actual cops, and that should not be, but it is the truth.
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