Saturday, January 14, 2012

Blame The Environment of the Criminal

Residents in our metro make blaming N.O and projects a habitual excuse. No doubt that in many cases they’re right. I also feel that they don’t have to constantly remind us of it. That’s what This Blog is About. It’s Not only about how they Deny their own issue by remind us that Their Crime problems are because of N.O. But simply for us as residents of N.O. to acknowledge the primary cause of the problems in our city. 

At one time I’d respond to comments on nola.com via my blog in regard to comments where folks would blast their chops about what they feel caused a crime and Who they blame for it. but now I hardly even read the comments because it makes me want to explode.  Maybe I should start doing so again because i hate to see how folks in Surrounding Parishes in denial of their own criminal element.

Here’s a prime example by the kind of denial I’m referring to.

So, I’m sitting here watching the news about that guy who drove into a canal while attempting to flee police.. all I could do is shake my Head. and it wasn’t because of the events taking place because things like that happen on average.

What got to me was it was the woman who they interviewed who said this “ You don’t see this a lot, especially in Metairie….Very good and quiet neighborhood. umm I was Shocked! I was Just like Wow!”

THAT IS PURE DENIAL!

She said that as if where she was standing was a happy go lucky place, but it’s Not!..And That’s exactly how the folks on Nola.com respond in reference to criminal activity in and around the Metro Area as a whole.

As Residents, we all have a right to complain about the crime in our neighborhoods. But putting the blame directly on public education, Public Housing or New Orleans alone as a whole now days is insane.

What we are dealing with in New Orleans, and have always dealt with is lack of community in these neighborhoods. Community goes beyond school and neighborhood Living. its about the interactions between neighbors and neighboring Institutions like churches, schools, Police and recreation facilities to ensure that their grounds are safe. It’s supposed to be a NETWORK OF COMMON UNITY.

Folks Blame the Schools for problems with their children it’s not the Schools job to teach your child everything they need to know about Life. It’s up to the parents to teach their kids to to stray away from Criminal element.

Here we have Momma’s getting on TV after their child’s been caught up in something bad. They say things like this “The public school system has failed my child”. NO, YOU FAILIED YOUR CHILD. You allowed your child to roam free in the wilderness with a lack of guidance on your part. When these kids have on real role models within their homes, they become influenced by what's said by entertainers and what’s done on the streets.

I’ve lived in the Projects 20 years of my life and I’ve avoided being influenced by The Criminal Element. It’s not easy to go live through but it is avoidable. I’m not trying to make the projects look Good, but when I was coming up in the projects, kids had a lot self invested activities to occupy their times and to keep them out of trouble. There was always the Criminal element but It was avoidable depending on how that child is raised.

My Siblings We were given the opportunity to play with & associate with our Other kids no mater their in home situation. These were the things that kept us occupied. All of it wasn’t good, but they all were experiences that allowed us to make our own decisions about who to hang out with or why we shouldn’t be in their presence.

I have seen kids grow up to be murders, and were murderers themselves. a Few lived in good homes with 2 parents yet were influenced by the Thug Life. Some were living with it in their homes, so became thugs, sold drugs and ended up dead. As for the many that are still living thing. That may be great for them, yet they still live a life that will lead them to their graves.   I survived that environment it because I wasn’t engaging myself in criminal activity. Yet as we have seen in the news in the past 7 years you don’t have be living the Thug life to end up as a victim.

Which Brings me to the fact that Buildings don’t create criminals. It’s the mentality the child which is instilled in them while being raised. Parents control what goes on in their homes. Between school and home, It’s like sending your child into the the wilderness. And If the child is raised by the Beast of the wilderness, he or she will behave like a beast of the wild. It’s the parents responsibility to teach that child proper decision making and general life skills that would keep him away from a dangerous path.

Once a child walks out their door they encounter many things that they can possibly bring into their homes. They could even possibly be in trouble with the law. They don’t have to be walking through “The Hood” for that to occur. As mentioned before, It’s a Parental priority to teach that child to not be influenced by the environment outside of their homes. and If your home is that place where the child is experiencing these troubles. YOU as a parent should to be IN JAIL.

What we are dealing with all over the city as as well as across parish lines is partially due the gentrification of New Orleans neighborhoods. (Not in a Racist way) But as wanted by people who blamed the Projects for all of the problems in the City.

Prior to Katrina people who didn’t live in or around public housing complained about the projects being crime infested neighborhoods & that should be demolished. Katrina came, they got what they wanted. They also inherited the problems that would eventually come their demand.

I Believe that a number of those who demanded the demolition of public housing were among the folks fighting to reopen the projects. They were the folks who realized that Their Neighborhoods would eventually become crime infested. Maybe it wasn’t all of the protesters, but I personally believe that it may have been the internal reason many of them assisted in the fight for fair housing. They predetermined the outcome. They now are witnessing It.

Pre-Katrina, New Orleans crime was centralized to neighborhoods within certain areas of the city Many which includes public housing. When those areas were deemed no longer Inhabitable, they were torn down.

At this point, criminals and potential criminals were then being housed throughout areas where violent crime was Seldom. Crime went up in those neighborhoods simply because criminals are running from Area to Area searching for somebody to Rob, Kill or deal drugs. and the retaliation factor followed.

My point of Repeating it so much is Because Its a fact that rebuilding new neighborhoods do not the environment beyond its appearance. It Takes a Village to raise a Child. But If the Village is corrupt, the child will likely become corrupt. Especially if his parents allow him to be a product of that village.

All I could hope for is that young parents would educate their kids and raise them to live right. The school and the neighborhood can’t do it for you unless they are willing to come together as a community and be totally against the state or corruption which is killing our Kids.

I could go on and on, but I’m ending it here.

Note From The Book

No comments: