If I can, I (also) would like to clear up a couple of what seems like misconceptions regarding drug dealing, gangs and solutions and ongoing efforts.
First, the different gangs each have territory that encompasses both North and Southside Neighborhoods. The wars, shootings, and fights are the result of gangs fighting for the most lucrative markets. Territory has very little to do with it, otherwise some gang looking for territory would set up out in Isanti County. What they want is market share, not territory. But Jonathon is correct, the lucrative market areas are "usually" areas that have experienced such problems in the past. My contention is that these same impacted neighborhoods were in the past where the politicians and police used as "Containment Zones". I agree with Jonathon that crime comes to Jordan from other parts of the City, County, State, and Nation. But it does not "Just" come to Jordan. It comes to the "Impacted Neighborhoods". Sometimes it is even driven into certain areas such as the Phillips Neighborhood by our political leaders. The sweep of Whittier drug dealers into Phillips during the middle 1990's and the "Border Patrol" that was run by the Minneapolis Police Department to keep them contained there is an example of such. That again is not idle speculation. We "Knew" it for years, and Sharon denied it, but a MPD official finally admitted it a public meeting years later. I do with all due respect take exception with Jonathon about Jordan being the original home of displaced crime. I am sure Jonathon was just using this as a rhetorical tool and was not implying that he actually believed this. While I feel for Jordan and the present situation, I have to say that Jordan has become a more recent "home" for "displaced crime". Not that this will make Jordan residents any safer or happier tonight. Those who have lived for a long time in Minneapolis can tell Jonathon about much more original "homes" for "displaced crime". While Jordan is at present a hotspot, Phillips and Franklin have had that questionable honor several times in the past and for many years. We have also made the point for many years that we all need to look at this problem City wide, and not just from a single neighborhood perspective. Jonathon do not doubt that at the present time drug dealers are deciding less risky business is to be found from moving South. I watched vans bring the day laborers to Park and Franklin Avenue this morning to do their day of street dealing. But we do need to work together on this shared problem that Jordan and we do not completely monopolize. A problem, however, that we in Jordan and Ventura Village seem to have presently cornered most of the market on. It will move as pressure is exerted. During the time 5 or 6 people were shot in Jordan, there were 3 or 4 being shot in Phillips. Can you imagine that 3 or 4 people get shot over a couple of day's period and it hardly makes the news because twice as many are shot in a different neighborhood. Amazing! I am quite sure more Americans were shot that week in Minneapolis than were shot in the whole country of Iraq during the same period. Amazing!! We from my area have a long history of going to the aid of other impacted communities. I remember going with Phillips folks to help Eric Mahkmoud with problems on Plymouth Avenue. That was about 1986 or 87. Phillips folks also helped organize the effort and participated in fight when Central Neighborhood was the home of "displaced crime". The North side and Southside have shared this problem for a lot of years. Each of us could argue about who has it worse, but that is like cancer patients arguing about who has it worse. We need to support each other through the Chemo. As for the "Patrol" starting in Jordan. Jonathon there is neighborhood patrols going on in Phillips. Have been for years, but the current one with Bloomington Avenue has been going on for a couple of years, and another is being planned for 2200 block between Park and 5th Avenue. Some of the patrol people have been beat-up and one has had her car shot-up by drug dealers. That call for help you mention had its latest version from Phillips about a year ago. I am glad you are offering it now, but first take care of Jordan for us to start with. I know it is hard to believe now, with the unbelievable frustration that can come from living in the horror of a "War" in your front yard, but others have gone through this before. We know how to fight the fight and the model that is being set up was set up before. Some of the folks with experience are in your back yard. Talk to Erick Mahkmoud over North if he still lives there. Or some of the other old "Veterans". The Muslim community was in particularly very active in the Black community fighting crime in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Use their experience. We welcome a holistic Citywide approach to the problem. It was the inspiration behind the "Coalition of Impacted Neighborhoods" that some people from Jordan, Hawthorne, Phillips, Ventura Village, Whittier, and Stevens worked on earlier in the year. The Impacted Neighborhoods are not difficult to find. Ask for a crime statistics map, it will be concentrated in those areas. Ask for a map of where sex offenders are housed, they will be concentrated in those areas. Ask for a map of poverty statistics, it will be concentrated in those areas. Ask for almost anything you can think of bad (but not resources) and it will be concentrated in those areas. With Jordan and Ventura Village pretty much leading all the other neighborhoods per capita. The pattern of discrimination is almost indisputable for any serious person. The only way for other "Impacted Neighborhoods" to NOT be just the next crime displacement area is to work together. The "Impacted Neighborhoods" in fact need to all rise with the tide, rather than taking turns under the floodwater. It's like some of Jonathon and my people in "Mississippi County". Poor folks have got to look out for and help each other when the river rises, cause no body else is. They may applaud if we succeed, or say, "Oh, that's too bad" if we fail, but the best chance we have for help is from each other. They will join in the parade after it gets going, but Jordan, Hawthorne, Phillips and Ventura Village had better have the music in sync and playing loud, or they will just watch us go on by. For the person who says about RT, "I have noticed a pattern that the issue that Mayor Rybak tends to come on strong about is 'law and order'." Have you considered that such a concern is all the Mayor is actually mandated to do. The Mayor is important to lead in other important matters, but the real responsibility he has is to provide for public safety. The other things are real nice extras. The City Council is where Margaret needs to concentrate her efforts, they have the power to make the changes she desires. Jim Graham, Ventura Village >"We can only be what we give ourselves the power to be" - A Cherokee Feast of Days "The people are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty." - Thomas Jefferson TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. 2. If you don't like what's being discussed here, don't complain - change the subject (Mpls-specific, of course.) ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
