Yet more proof that the curfew is nothing more than a band-aid on a festering wound that, I believe, improved social programs and community investment can help heal. The story is on NBC4 and WTOP. The "facts" vary, and why the bus continued en route to Ft. Lincoln remains a mystery, but what seems to jive in all versions is this:
Around 4:45pm Wednesday, September 20, 2006, near Rhode Island and Montana Avenues, NE, a group of juveniles threw either rocks or a brick through a window in the bus. One of the juveniles proceeded to push a gun through the broken window and fire off two rounds. Between 15 and 35 people were on board, and no one was injured. It is believed that the intended target was a group of teens that likely boarded the bus at the Rhode Island Avenue Metro. Before transit police were able to get involved, all of the passengers (i.e. witnesses and potential suspects) were dropped off at their respective stops. I will be terribly impressed if the authorities are able to get any leads now that everyone involved is scattered.
The curfew couldn't stop this; gun control couldn't stop this. Being proactive in our children's lives can. It really does take a village, and anyone who finds that trite or cliché is no better than the problem at hand.
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are you against a curfew for children ?
ReplyDeleteNope - nor am I against gun control. My concern is that we use laws/mandates/rules like these thinking they will solve the core problem (and, as of right now, the curfew expires on September 28th). Getting kids in by 10pm - if/when the curfew is enforced - doesn't really address the social development of the children, any adverse issues they may be dealing with at home, or where 17-year-olds can be after 10pm (I had a curfew even when I was 18).
ReplyDeleteOur goal shouldn't be to hide kids away in their homes (which, in too many cases, isn't the best place for them either); it should be to make the streets and our communities as clean and safe as possible. Yes, it appears the curfew - and possibly the cameras - have helped bring some of our crime down. But has the wound healed any underneath that band-aid? What do we do when it doesn't stick anymore?
I know it's not a laughing matter, but reading this post I couldn't help thinking of that Seinfeld episode where somehow Kramer takes over driving a city bus with some lunatic attacking him. Then he says "So I opened the door and kicked him out at the next stop," and Seinfeld says, "You kept making all the stops?!?" to which Kramer says, "Well people kept ringing the bell!"
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with a little levity courtesy of Seinfeld.
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