tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503569476724915921.post5668960369286949480..comments2023-04-12T06:24:00.587-07:00Comments on The Civil Rights Movement : Escaping the AvenueUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503569476724915921.post-73324122760822983762013-03-06T15:04:51.038-08:002013-03-06T15:04:51.038-08:00I am glad you brought up the point of the lack of ...I am glad you brought up the point of the lack of governmental support in the prevention of gang violence. In my Urban Social Problems class we recently discussed the CeaseFire program. This was a program that was implemented in Chicago, and funded by the city government, to counter gang violence through alternative means. The program uses the powerful voice of ex-gang members to intervene in the daily (possibly violent) interractions of current gangs. They are able to reason with the gang members because they have been through the same things.(the film The Interrupters is about this program)This program saw a huge amount of success and lowered gang-related crime in the Chicago significantly when it was well-funded. Once a new mayor was elected, the funding was virtually cut and crime rates soared again. I think that the US government should seriously invest in programs such as this that take an alterative approach to crime prevention. That programs like CeaseFire have existed previously gives me hope for programs that could be implemented in the future. Elizabeth Pattersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13048981923245534021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503569476724915921.post-46997653004176680462013-03-06T10:48:58.582-08:002013-03-06T10:48:58.582-08:00Very well said, Della. I was also struck by the vi...Very well said, Della. I was also struck by the violence and social destruction Baldwin described, but to hear that an equally, if not more, disturbing scene is an ongoing reality for the students of Harper High is heartbreaking- 29 recent deaths in one student body is just devastating. Like you said, the teachers and social workers are doing their best to keep students educated, happy, and alive, but where is the government in this? How does a community so overwhelmed by violence receive little to no assistance from outside authorities? Harper High students, just like Baldwin and his Harlem-raised peers, consider it the highest of accomplishments to not only graduate from high school but to live that long, period; society doesn’t expect much more from them, so this is a miracle within itself. These students, and Baldwin’s schoolmates, deserve the very best chance at a quality education and a safe, happy life, yet they cannot dream of such a chance, because their government has left them to fend for themselves. Unfortunately, as Alex mentions in “Resegregating Memphis City Schools” this may be the case for our own Memphis students in the coming year. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02659264190628294966noreply@blogger.com