The death of anyone by violence is not acceptable. The innate value of a gang-bangers life is no less than that of law-abiding citizens. The quality of their life contributions to family, society, and own self however, are in dispute. Even though gang violence most often affects those in gangs, it has broader societal impacts. Hospitals, courts, prison, counseling, public defenders, prosecutors, drug treatment, rehabilitation, psychologists, schools, insurance, police, taxes ....just to name a few. And yes, innocent bystanders too.
Violent crime in Minneapolis (including the Northside) was much worse in 1995. Nearly a 100 murders and thousands more victims of violent crime. All crime categories were nearly double what they are now. It's ironic that last year the concentration of violence was centered in the 3rd Precinct. Much of the violence was directed at and by gang members. This year the 3rd Precinct is seeing the lowest violent crime levels in over 14 years. The Star Tribune alludes to community-police partnerships in this section of the city as a means of achieving positive results. It may not be as simple as merely duplicating these partnerships. Lacking corporate support, such as Allina and/or Wells Fargo, the Northside must build a broader grass-roots support to abate violence in the community. Groups like the Hawthorn Huddle and the Jordan Area Community Group are excellent example of these types of organizations. New groups, including the Peace Foundation and others, will find ways of providing leadership to work through the current violence. The masses did not abandon Minneapolis in 1995. They should not now. G.W. Reinhardt MPD Excelsior REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ 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
