On 9/15/2011 11:32 AM, Joe Clarke wrote:
Poverty and violence do create a low-brow, value deficient, "urban
desperado"- type, whose greatest value is "respect" - but respect in
the Mafia sense, where you retaliate if you don't get it. Violations
of this are meted out with deadly violence - the stuff of the 5
o'clock news. Even parents (and communities) are afraid to intervene
because they could be the next one to be targeted. The ready
availability of deadly force, escalates the problem.
Joe Clark says: "Don't make me into a "benign stereotype", which you
seem to be good at doing;"
Joe is a hoot!
I think it's important to emphasize that Joe's stereotype of the "urban
desperado" is a normal expected human response, for some, to the chronic
traumatic stress that large numbers of kids live in. By saying that,
I'm in no way condoning it or justifying it. And many kids in the same
situations reject this reaction even though the trauma and abandonment
they experience harms them in other ways like substance abuse, dropout,
or clinical depression.
Too often when we attempt to discuss these normal human responses and
the early life situations which predict harmful outcomes, we are shouted
down and called names like "bleeding heart liberals" My point is that
both crime and Joe's stereotype of teens are responses that must be
anticipated and understood as likely human responses, for some, to
unnatural levels of chronic and traumatic stress.
Look how privileged leaders in civic associations often abuse their
power. It takes an epiphany in this society for most of us to choose
fairness and kindness, when power is the only value that seems to rule
the world around us. (How many millions of people have died through the
criminal abuse of power by our tough leading citizens? The high brow,
gated community, desperados!) Many kids are too far into a dangerous
course before they have a chance at an epiphany, through picking up a
musical instrument or finding a chess club, etc.
There is mass denial in our culture that explains the shouting down of
"bleeding hearts" when they try to discuss responsible societal
policies. We are not basing our policies or institutional responses to
what the evidence of early childhood trauma clearly points to! It's not
being a bleeding heart to reject stupid greed based policy that makes
everyone unsafe and insecure.
Glenn
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