craig11152 wrote: ↑Tue May 18, 2021 10:47 am
jadednihilist wrote: ↑Tue May 18, 2021 8:25 am
However, I disagree on any insinuation that this is an issue that is ignored within the black community (my apologies in advance if I misinterpreted your post). There are a number of community activists who work hard to reduce violence
My point is when a cop kills a black man and the circumstances are hard or impossible to defend it creates a nationwide call to action. People make signs, march in the streets, confront cops, destroy property, in multiple cities around the country.
In a typical week in most large cities in America people get murdered, white and black. In Chicago this year there are a little over 200 homicides and its only the middle of May. A vast majority are black males. My hyperbole aside there is NO visible outrage. Certainly not nationwide outrage.
Everybody knows who George Floyd was but virtually nobody outside a few people in Detroit could name the triple homicide victims April 25.
Fair point. Thank you for the clarification. I do agree that the discussion, as framed in the public forum (media) is intentionally divisive and counterproductive. As you and km1125 alluded to, I think it is a fair question to ask where does the responsibility lie in resolving inner city violence?
I would broaden the argument towards having a movement understanding the causes of high inner-city violent crime rates. That's where the discussion determining the role and the magnitude that systemic racism has to play in fomenting a predisposition to violence. Note that a lot of BLM discussions do center around systemic racism in several facets of life, not just policing. This discussion explores questions such as, does the violence stem from an absence of opportunity? Higher income black communities do not see nearly the level of crime rates as lower income black communities. How much of a role does our public school system play in opportunity? Detroit schools have historically underprepared their students for 20th and 21st century jobs and college education. This ties into studies that have shown the
zip code in which you grew up in is actually a decent predictor of life expectancy. Other questions regarding violence, as bmw alluded to, stem from the dissolution of the nuclear family (and does this cut across racial lines)? What role does each racial community have to play in resolving racial disparities?
We don't have the answers to these questions. We have a hodgepodge of studies (all with subjectivities and assumptions that can be nitpicked to death), movements, and red hot debates where we talk over each other. We're not going to get there with the cable news/social media/political outrage machines, but I do believe we could with a series of brutally honest and difficult conversations. My inclination is that there is a burden on the broader systemic role that can go a long way in reducing racial disparities, including violent crime rates, which requires buy-in from the communities in effected, but also the American public at large. I say this because we've never really addressed the depths of the centuries racism in this country. We got rid of slavery, but continued oppression through Jim Crow. We got rid of Jim Crow and made actively racist attitudes taboo in the 1960s, but we haven't addressed the lingering disparities. Do the disparities go away naturally - or are there some broader actions that will facilitate equity?
I think most people come into this world wanting basically the same thing: to get by and have a meaningful life. All of my above questions center around finding out how have we allowed things to derail as they have.
Honestly, it's not "our job" to reduce the recidivism rates. It should be much more clear that the responsibility is on the convict to change his/her ways and be held accountable. We can remove some barriers that might make it easier to assimilate back to society like removing the felony from one-time non-violent crimes once the sentence is served, but if anything we need closer monitoring in the probationary period following incarceration, and severe penalties for violations.
As to km1225's point, I would agree that there is plenty of responsibility that lies on the convict. However, that doesn't change the fact that heavily punitive approaches have helped deter repeat offenders and end up causing more victims of crimes. I would argue that a bit of help would go a long way in making everyone safer, rather than hinging our bets on people whom already been deemed to have caused societal harm compounded by punishment and a permanent stain on their record that severely limits employment opportunities. Isn't the time served enough punishment - or should the felon label be one that is effectively a life sentence?
I'm here for a good, hearty debate, to agree and disagree respectfully, and commiserate on the current state of terrestrial radio.