Got Gun?

There is a constant rise in young men losing their lives within their neighborhoods. Richmond, Oakland, and San Francisco has been known for the highest crime rate in the state. Although these cities have nice neighborhoods, there are the low income neighborhoods that they are known for. On a given year the homicide rate can range from 100-150 a year. So what is the issue within these low income neighborhoods? The answer is the easy access to a gun. Everyone from the grandparents to the grandchildren are liable to have a gun. The major reason is because they do not have to go to a gun store, which require one to be a certain age and to not have a record. Instead they are going to people within the neighborhoods that are selling the guns to anyone who has the cash. According to Claudia Rowe, "Easy to get guns" article,"You can pretty much tell where to get a gun if you want one, said Lorenzo Miller, 18, who believes his younger brother got the semiautomatic from a peer. Guns being brought to school? It gets to a point where it's not even surprising." If we could figure out how stop the black market from selling guns, then we could could save a number of lives. How did you get you gun?

More and More Liquor stores

While riding around a number of low income neighborhoods, I have noticed the number of liquor stores (also known as smoke shops) present compared to the suburban neighborhoods. Could this be one factor for high crime rates? There is almost a liquor store on every corner within these neighborhoods, but in the suburban communities they are not any. Suburban neighborhoods have more of grocery stores. So what is the reason behind that? Many residents of low income neighborhoods believe that this is one of the factors for high crime rates. According to Anyi Howell, author of “Why so many liquor stores,” states “Some of these stores add to community problems such as public drunkenness and domestic violence with liquor discounts and lax rules that make it easy to get drunk and get alcohol without being ID'd. And if you do get ID'd, fret not -- just walk down the block.” On the other hand, although there are many liquor stores within these communities, some would say that is not a factor for high crime rate. No one makes people go into the store and buy alcohol or other substances. What about those that stay in the neighborhood that is not affected by the liquor stores. However, by having many liquor stores in these communities instead of having more schools, suggest school is last and making money off the community by any means is first. What if there weren’t any liquor stores in these communities? Instead there should be more schools, grocery stores like the suburban neighborhoods. Would that make a difference on how people perceive low income neighborhoods? Would it decrease the high crime rate?

Teenage pregnancy rate

How do low income neighborhoods correlate with high pregnancy rate? The drug problem within low income neighborhoods tend to over shadow other issues within these neighborhoods. One particular issue is the high pregnancy rate within low income neighborhoods. According to solutionsforamerica.org, “The birth rate remains high in low-income, minority neighborhoods, where the birth rate still remains at 153and 138 births per 1,000 for black and Hispanic teenage girls respectively.”
The reason for this might be the lack of parenthood within these communities, and therefore teenage girls have no one to watch over them. Some believe that there is nothing better outside the neighborhood, but to follow what they have always been exposed to. A lot of these girls mothers are on drugs and/or trying to raise the other children, and working many of jobs to get their children out of the these neighborhoods. As a result, the teenage girl has no one to have control of her and to monitor her actions. Therefore she is left to do what she wants such as have sex and to not think about the consequence, such as being pregnant at a young age.

Lack of Role Models

In low income neighborhoods, many young men feel pressure from their peers to respect them as the baldest and most loyal “gangster” in the neighborhood, which leads them to commit some hideous crimes (such as shooting at someone and/or killing another young man). While some young men portray that persona, many of them rather not go that route. However, they feel the continuous pressure from surrounding peers to do what is a sense of normal behavior within these low income neighborhoods, which to live and participate in a life of crime.

Young men want to do the right thing, but are afraid. No, they are not afraid of being shot or arrested but doing what is right. They are so worried of not being with the crowd, that they will do anything to fit in. Some have sold drugs and killed other young men as a way to prove their loyalty to the streets. That is not loyalty but has proved to be a lack of guidance. Young men in these neighborhoods lack a father figure or some sort of a positive role model. According to Ron Stewart, a Buffalo State College sociology professor who specializes in the African-American family, and black males in particular, said “The absence of fathers is a major factor in sons turning to a tough street culture in search of acceptance and identity…..” Who are you following?
http://www.buffalonews.com/341/story/399893.html

Is it the Neighborhood?

There has been numerous discussions about children that live in impoverished neighborhoods receive the worst education compared to residents in suburban communities. Some would say, that is the reason for their failure in life and not making it to college. According to BNet, “The location of a school, as in an urban, rural, or suburban setting, has been shown to effect various factors related to education. For example, the location of a school is often associated with the socioeconomic status level of the school, or in other words the poverty of the school, which is frequently measured by the number of students receiving free and reduced lunches. Schools in more urban settings are associated with high level of poverty and in consequence have a lower amount of money to spend per child on education.”
Although a child’s neighborhood may effect his or her education, its not an excuse for those children to fail in life. Yes, their neighborhood may play a small role, but it should not be used as a crutch. How do we explain when 2 kids grow up in the same neighborhood, receive the same education, but one goes on to graduate from college and be successful in life? Therefore its not the neighborhood.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4126/is_/ai_n9397422

Switching Roles

What if the people that live in low income neighborhoods and the police officers that patrol those neighborhoods had the opportunity to switch roles with each other? Many times the focus of strain is always looked at from the residents of these neighborhoods, but never from the police officers that patrol these neighborhoods. Police officers are faced with strain when assigned to these neighborhoods too. No, not by economics, but by the stress of trying to have a community oriented attitude in a dangerous neighborhood, while at the same time fearing to be shot and wondering if they will make home to their families. I must admit that I can understand an officer having a different attitude, while patrolling low income neighborhoods than the suburbs. It’s hard having community oriented policing in such communities, when a officer knows that the majority of the residents label them as the enemy or pig, rather than hard working men and women trying to serve and protect them. While both feel like their issues are more important than one another, each must try to look at it from the opposite side.

Low income neighborhoods should examine the pressure that officers are under and officers should look at the amount of strain low income residents are trying to cope with. Then, maybe they might be able to understand both situations. For example, there is a program called Walk a Mile. This program “Walk a Mile is a national educational program that pairs policymakers with constituents who are either low-income parents or youth living in foster care. The pairs spend a month together learning about each other's lives, gaining new perspectives and "walking a mile" in each other shoes” (Walk a Mile). They should have the same program for officers that patrol these type of Low income neighborhoods.

Strain

Everybody is chasing the mighty dollar, the “American Dream“. It is amazing what people will go through to get the dollar bill. Some,although, not rich, are content with what they have. Others are not content with their situation. Many residents of low income neighborhoods suffer from strain. Residents in these neighborhoods are upset because of their economic status and their dilapidated neighborhoods. Some feel that the reason for their low income situation is because they dont have the same access to needed things as those in suburban neighborhoods have. As a result, many residents in these neighborhoods go by the philosophy, “by any means necessary.” According to International Encyclopedia of Justice studies, “Strain is the pressure on disadvantaged minority groups and the lower urban populous to take advantage of any effective available means to income and success that they can find even if these means are illegal.” Some illegal means might include theft, selling drugs, and prostitution. Does the end justify the means?
http://www.iejs.com/