It's time we took gun crimes seriously.
Yesterday 16-year-old Keyon Campbell was shot down on his driveway as he attempted to start his mom's car [Star]. Police think it's a case of mistaken identity - Campbell's a smart, student, employed, an avid basketball player, did not have a problem with the law and even starred in a short documentary as a boy on the right track - in short, all strikes against the negative stereotype of a young black man.
And he was shot down in cold blood in front of his house.
Police are of course clamoring to solve the case, but it's time gun crime is taken more seriously at higher levels.
When the Harper government came to power I thought finally we would have someone with the balls to do something about gun crime. Let's face it, Paul Martin's good-for-nothing plan to ban guns that were already banned was an act of desperation.
Yet now, nothing seems to have worked, in fact Toronto is on course to break it's 1991 record of 89 homicides, mostly with guns. School fights are now not settled with a punch-up but a shoot-out. What sort of society is this?
I don't think Campbell's death will strike much into public consciousness. Another black kid shot, most will think, besides he wasn't shopping downtown on Boxing Day and where's his dad? Those were what I thought as I read that story.
But his death DESERVES to be in the public conscious. It SHOULD spearhead an effort to cut down the illegal guns brought in from the States. And it SHOULD result in demands for greater punishment against perpetrators of gun violence on our streets.
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3 comments:
Yes, something must be done about gun crime - but its no good shouing "something must e done something must be done!"
What? Do you have any ideas?
I know of one project that has started to tackle i - its called the street project, based in London Brixton.
AND, if you have any ideas - the government will fund you.
I tell you what mate, if you have an idea - I would work with you on it.
I'm currently working on one myself.
PS; Harsh punishments dont work. In short - the mentality that kills has already forsaken what a mentally healthy person would consiously avoid (such as punishment).
Perpetrator's mentality is completely different to citizen mentality.
The harsher the punishments,the more brutal the crimes and the greater the street cred associated with it.
If the sentences get too touch - all that will achieve is a more gangsta culture....have you never listened to Tupac or Biggie? I'm not a rap fan - but these mem are expressing the thoughts of these people, and explaining how they live. Believe me - the first innocent to go down to harsher punsihment will be a hero, influenicing others to be "hero"s as well.
The law must be respected not feared. Harsher penalities will never achieve that.
It's been a long time, and just last week 3 young men were shot in Toronto and all one radio commentator said was "he looked at the pictures and found no sympathy".
Why?
They were black = likely to be involved in gangs.
I really don't know what to say - the fact that I should be angry or the fact that police later said they WERE involved in gangs.
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