Stats
I'm quickly becoming a fan of The Star's Steve Penn. From his recent column:
As the murder rate continues to surge with no cessation in sight and people look for answers, one fact is becoming perfectly clear: If no truce emerges among rival gangs, if respect for life isn't restored on the streets soon, then 2005 may go down as the most violent year in recent memory.
However, I'm not sure the problem is truly "gang" related. At least, not "gang" in the classic sense of the word. For better or worse, KC has always been on the tail end of most cultural trends. The urban (read: black and Latino) "gang" phenomenon largely played itself out during the early and mid-90's in the wake of cheesy Hollywood gang dramas like Colors, Boyz in the Hood, Menace II Society etc., etc. (As a brief aside, thank God I was too young to get caught up in the fad and also had two good parents or I would have been one of the countless knuckleheads with a rap sheet because they took rap music and gangsta movies far too seriously.)
Instead, it's possible that the upsurge in local violence is just one of the many indicators that our nation's economy is in distress. Watch the stock market if you'd like, but paying attention to what the people around you are buying, selling or stocking up on is also a great way to gauge the economic pulse of your community. Notice auto dealerships have been pretty much giving cars away for the past three years.
In my opinion, the violence in KC is simply a sign that even the thugs on the street can feel pinch of these lean Republican years. We can't all benefit from lower taxes on dividends. Clearly, crack and meth money must be hard to come by nowadays.
Sad thing is, as the summer approaches, historically the body count in KC rises along with the temperature.
posted by Tony Permalink
what you are referring to as the phenomenon, is actually a media trend that glorified gangs during the late 80's and early 90's. gangs existed before that, and gangs exist now.
gangs existed in kansas city well before colors, boyz in the hood, and menace ii society. the 31st street gang, the 43rd street gang (fourtrey) are both gangs that existed in the sixties and still do to this day, at least this is what i have been told by people who live in these neighborhoods. i don't think my neighborhood has a gang yet.
True, gangs have a long history in this town and across the country. There is always a great supply of dumbasses in need of friends. It’s probably the same reason fraternities and sororities are always packed.
But are gangs responsible for the recent upswing in KC violence? I don’t think so. You could blame a myriad of other things like the widespread availability of guns, hard economic times turned even harder for those who are already poor (my choice), KC’s lackluster public education system, the high pollen count or the unavailability of PS2 and other gaming systems for urban kids who are forced to take target practice in the real world.
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