We all know the stats, right? Fifty percent of U.S. homicide victims are black, and 9 out of 10 of them were killed by other blacks. Black people are consistently criticized — often by white people who think blacks aren't allowed to comment on white racism as long as there is such a problem with black-on-black crime** — for not stepping up to do something about this problem. No where is "this problem" more prevalent than in Philadelphia, which has the highest murder rate out of all the major American cities. But guess what, critics! Philadelphians, black Philadelphians, are stepping up and making actual attempts to save their city.
In an experiment being watched by at least five other U.S. cities, 32 men in two groups spent the early evening hours walking the streets of South Philadelphia to deter street crime in one of the city's most dangerous areas.
Organizers said the groups were the "vanguard." More than 10,000 men have volunteered to become a regular presence in crime hot spots, and to provide advice and professional services to the young men who make up about 85 percent of the city's shooting victims.
The initiative, called "10,000 Men: It's a New Day," responds to a sharp rise in street violence that caused 406 murders last year, the highest in nine years. National media now refer to the "City of Brotherly Love' as "Killadelphia." So far this year, there have been 368 homicides.
Of course, I have no clue whether or not it's going to work. But it's the effort and initiative on the part of these people that's encouraging, no matter the outcome. [Reuters]
**Black people deserve to be criticized on the black crime issue, but that's a piss-poor reason. Note to these white (and sometimes black, Hispanic, Asian, etc.) people — you're wrong, shut up, and the two things (racism and black-on-black crime) are not mutually exclusive. At all. And stop being apologists for racism.
I do stand behind and agree with the argument that "black leaders" would better serve the community by helping to combat black-on-black crime instead of burying the n-word and going to lunch with Bill O'Reilly. The point — black-on-black crime should not be ignored and blatant racism should not go unchecked. The end.
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I'm surprised that something as simple as civilians walking around would deter crime. The police dept is negligent if they have the man power yet civilians have to stroll the street at night doing a job that really belongs to the police. I applaud these men but I'm worried that they are jeopardizing their own safety. Do they have a means of protecting themselves if someone attacks them? What happens if a crime is committed and they are the only ones around? Call the cops who will take forever? I definitely see it as a successful deterrent to petty crime and even maybe drug deals, but if someone has a gun, wants to use it and has nothing to lose, what exactly can these volunteers do to stop them?
Aren't there enough Black men in jail in Pennyslvania?
So now the City of Philadelphia has set up a network of 10,000 snitches - to send even more Black men to jail!
Instead of creating more jobs for African Americans, Philly is trying to fill more jail cells.
Beyond that, how come they're only letting MEN join this program?
If we're going to have a network of Black snitches, why can't women get in the mix?
Or is that some kind of fundamentalist Christian patriarchal sexism thing, that only men should be involved in collaborating with the pigs in sending brothers to jail?
"a network of 10,000 snitches"
That made me laugh.
Will they have guns? If not, we may just end up having a network of 10,000 dead dudes. I mean, volunteer can turn into innocent bystander pretty quickly.
bmd is right.
Gregory, you need to read the whole thing. They aren't finding people to throw in jail. They are there to deter crime, and yes, it might end up being a network of 10,000 well-intentioned dead men.
Daria,
I actually have read a full length account of Philadelphia's plan to use 10,000 Black male informants to help the Philidelphia Police Dept more thoroughly repress the Black ghettoes of that city:
from REVOLUTION newspaper, Issue # 105, 10/21/07:
http://revcom.us/a/105/philly-snitches-en.html
So I can fully understand why some Black Philadelphians, in a desperate attempt to stop the wave of Black-on-Black killings, support this plan.
But I also understand that the intent of the City of Philadelphia is to use this program to fill Pennsylvania's jails with even more Black men than are incarcerated now.
I also know that this plan will lead to more police brutality, and police murders, targeting Black men.
Remember, the system has no interest in helping Black people (or poor or working class people of any color) - never forget that fact.
Also, not only is this plan racist, it also reeks of Cosbyesque sexist paternalism - if we have to have a network of snitches helping the police put our people in jail, why does it have to be an ALL MALE network of snitches?
I have to disagree. If the goal is to deter crime, I don't see how this would be putting more black men in jails.
As for why it has to be all-male, an unarmed woman alone at night, especially in a high-crime area, is probably at a significant risk of being sexually assaulted.
The negative way in which black people use "snitch" makes my skin crawl. While prisons tend to exacerbate problems when the criminals are released, I don't see it as a negative to put people who repeatedly victimize others, especially when you consider that their victims are almost always black. As their goal is deterrence, a better use of these men's energies would be youth programs, caring for kids after school, fixing the aesthetics, etc. Places that look bad are more likely to be hotspots for violent activities. Many neighborhoods have cleaned up their streets, painting plaes with paints chipping, picking up trash, etc.
Oh, also, as desperate as they are to see dramatic declines overnight, they need to think long and hard about this strategy and consider the alternative or supplementary programs here.