City Newspaper Archives - 1/2008

CRIME: Attack the causes of violence

Published on Jan 09, 2008
The federal drug laws of the 80's demonstrate the potential for public policy to be discriminatory and damaging. The laws have resulted in maximum sentences primarily for blacks convicted of crack cocaine possession. Whites with 10 times the amount of powder cocaine are punished with equal or lighter sentences - same drug, different preference for ingestion by race and socio-economic status.

The disproportionate implementation and outcomes of this policy mirror those of Rochester's Zero Tolerance policy, which negatively and disproportionately affects urbanites and blacks. Such grave policy errors are less likely to happen when bureaucratic leaders are more sensitive to the impact on a community.

It is not too late to rethink Zero Tolerance. I hope that City Council members have the courage to say "no" to Zero Tolerance and "yes" to various measures aimed at displacing the root causes of urban violence through preventative education and re-socialization in Rochester city schools and in the community.

A multi-pronged approach should include job training and placement for those who may otherwise resort to gang-related activities to make money. Accessible post-high school occupational education would be helpful, too. This is the best way to eliminate urban violence, by providing hope and the tools and opportunity for success in the face of adversity and poverty.

JULIE HUTCHINSON, GATES

Hutchinson is a community health nurse and a FINCH (Families in Need of Core Health) health and human services consultant.