Sox Shuffle Continues
Friday Afternoon Diversion
Jay-Z Announces 2010 Tour Dates. Chicago Not On List.
Around Town
I Fight Dragon$
From a public relations standpoint this has not been a banner couple weeks for the Chicago Police Department. First, the Reverend Al Sharpton opens a Chicago office for his National Action Network in order to address the issue of police brutality in Chicago. Days after Sharpton opened his office, 42-year-old Gefery Johnson died from injuries sustained after police Tasered and forcibly arrested him. Days after that, 18-year-old Aaron Harrison was shot to death by police in North Lawndale, leading to tensions between cops and neighborhood residents almost boiling over into more violence.
That's called a "perfect storm" by any definition. Rev. Sharpton capitalized on it last Friday, leading a protest outside Wallace's Catfish Corner on the West Side in his first public appearance since opening his new digs, calling for a "fair investigation" into Harrison's death. The only way the cops could have made it easier for Sharpton is if they had to arrest him by force.
Yesterday the families of Johnson and Harrison filed wrongful death lawsuits against the city. Living in a cynical society, we can't say that it wasn't unexpected to see lawsuits filed this quickly. What's interesting in the Harrison lawsuit, however, is the information that three security cameras were present in the vicinity of the shooting (two at an apartment building on the 1100 block of South Mozart, one at an industrial building on the 2800 block of West Roosevelt Road). Attorneys for Harrison's family want to know what's on the tapes, hoping that there's evidence to back up their claim that Harrison was unarmed at the time of his death, as witnesses to the shooting allege. Owners for all three cameras are cooperating with police to varying degrees. A recent autopsy report indicated that Harrison - who had an extensive arrest record that included one drug conviction - was shot in the left shoulder. This jibes with police accounts that Harrison was turning to fire a 9mm gun at them.
All this just adds fuel to the respective fires of all involved. The lawsuits will only lead to claims by supporters of the police department's action that the families are looking to "cash in" on their respective tragedies. For residents of North Lawndale and other depressed neighborhoods, it only furthers the mistrust of police that many residents harbor, unable to recognize that policing these neighborhoods is a rather thankless endeavor. And people on both sides wonder if Sharpton is acting with purely altruistic intentions. It'll continue like this in a vicious cycle until the root causes - poverty, education, et al - are addressed in an honest manner. Recent happenings like the opening of Austin Polytechnical Academy are only small steps. But they're necessary.
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*Sits back; waits for arguments to begin*
"until the root causes - poverty, education, et al - are addressed in an honest manner."
seems like small simple or even trite.
But in reality so central! Which is why it’s so impossible, in such a dishonest country that refuses to deal with the growing underside, but will concentrate on any thing else
We long ago in America made the decision--or let the decision be made for the more apathetic members of society--that we are more comfortable with police and prison solutions than anything connected to education, poverty, etc. We can turn back, of course, but only with great effort, as we've traveled pretty far into the swamp. Oh well.
Yeah because the gangbangers are such great students, always staying after school to do homework.
You can lead a horse to water...
Face it: these guys want to be thugs. They live by the gun, they die by it.
Jake - That was my response as well. Controversy for controversy's sake. I'm not biting.
Guest #4 - Your 'theory' is a cop-out (no pun intended). You think if these kids had a fairly stable family, enough food to eat and a decent education that they'd still 'want' to be 'thugs'? Your arrogance is astounding.
Guest '4':
When did you decide to be so blatantly ignorant? As a child, or more recently?
Yeah, a cop out to make people responsible for their actions.
Number 6's argument is weak. Sure, these kids would want different things if they had a stable family, enough food, and a decent education, but they don't have these things, and giving them these things now wouldn't make a damned bit of difference. The die has been cast, and we all are who we are. You can give all the handouts in the world, but this isn't going to change anything if people don't want to change. Even revolutionaries accept that change has to be fought for and won.
Saying the world would be different if it were different is a moronic argument, and it changes nothing.
The die has been cast
Oh guest number 9, would you say the Rubicon's been crossed, der der der....groan......
Funny that you make a Caesar reference while posting that social darwinism tinged jibber jabber. Throw the poor into the arena and let em fight it out to the death, last one standing gets a house in the suburbs!
What, so these dumbasses need a special social worker to tell them not to hang out in front of the liquor store with a gun in your pocket?
#4, "Face it, these guys want to be thugs..." That statement could also decribe some in the the CPD. I don't buy your statement by the way.
#9 "You can give all the handouts in the world, but this isn't going to change anything if people don't want to change." Is good education a handout these days? Did you ever think that some of these kids may want to change, but instead join gangs because it is the most "stable" family they have and it offers protection? I am not justifying gangs by any means, I think they are horrible...kids killing kids. If they had a better education and a more stable home life, and a family that didn't live in poverty, perhaps they would be different. Sudo is right: we need to address the fundamental issues here.
I really wish that Sharpton would lead protests and vigils against the gang violence and poverty in this city with as much fervor as he does the police violence. Unfortunately, with the repution of the CPD these days, the police in this city are an easy target.
Did "Rev" Al also protest the bricks being thrown at the police, the ongoing open drug markets, the blind eye of said drug markets by local churches, and cpntinued black-on-black crime, along with horrible school attendance?
Nope.
The problem, as always, is the white man....
I somewhat agree with your sentiment #13 but you do realize that there are non-white cops right?
I am sooooo sick of people blaming the schools. Do you realize that the schools, no matter how bad, by any standards are exponentially better than any school attended by anyone in the 19th century? Did kids attending one room school houses and living in log and mud cabins stab each other with pitchforks at a higher rate than their privleged countrymen? Did they go to jail at a higher rate because four students had to share one book?
If the schools suck so bad, it's alll the easier for ambitious students to get "all As."
My grandmother grew up without a mother in abject poverty. As far as I know she's never broken a law in her life. Nor has she ever complained about any of it, or said, "I didn't get the chance to go to college," even though she absolutely did not--they didn't even dream of it back then. She raised four kids who were all successes on not much money.
Navin: This isn't a discussion of who gets a house in the suburbs. It's a discussion about who puts themselves in a situation where they'll be shot by cops.
Sparky: No, good eduation is not a handout. In even the best of situations, it's a choice between hard work and intangible rewards or an easy path toward something that looks like immediate riches. So many people act like simply having the best teachers and best books will be enough to get a kid to learn, but you can't force any kid to sit down and open a book. The kid has to want it enough to put in the work and not take the easy way out.
I'm not saying we shouldn't invest in education ... we should. But we should also understand that no matter how good the school, there will be kids who take the easy way out.
Guest 15. By what standard do you mean "better". I'm not here to nitpick your statement, but I don't understand. Books? Student to teacher ratio? Phonics? Math?
There was an article in the Economist that shows the link between education, parenting/divorce and wealth. You should check it out.
Before there were gangs that consisted mostly of Hispanics, Blacks, and Asians, there were gangs consisting mostly of Jews, Irish, and Italians that were violent. But society sensationalizes those gangs to a degree and calls them the Mafia. It doesn't make those gangs any better.
I mean by probably any demonstrable standard. In what way would you suggest a one-room school house is superior to a modern day high school any where?
#16: I agree with you. The best teachers and best books will not be enough to get a kid to learn, no matter their socioeconomic status. But we still need to invest in education in this city and country. There are kids in this country that graduate from high school and are functionally illiterate. I am not blaming the teachers, and pumping money into the system isn't necessarily the answer, either. Maybe we need to be willing to hold back students if they fail. I don't know the answer.
The community needs to also be involved. Only recently have we seen that, with the high number of CPS students murdered this year. I don't think enough of the community where the violence occurs is outraged enough at the gangs.
18: When the student to teacher ratio is lower. When teachers can focus on the struggling student that wants to learn, instead of teaching a 50-student classroom. Classroom management was probably better in a one-room schoolhouse. Disciplining was probably easier. Collaboration among students was better.
I am not saying that we all need to go back to a one-room schoolhouse, but you shouldn't dismiss the one-room schoolhouse as poor education. In fact, there is educational literature out there suggesting we need to go back to smaller classrooms. Again, I don't know the answer. I am merely trying to understand why you think that the big public school education of 2007 is so much better. Why?
There weren't kids shooting at each other in the hallways, and toddlers didn't have to duck gunfire to get to class also.
Actually, school quality doesn't seem to be the independent variable anyway.
So moot point whether or not schools in the ghetto or out are better or worse.
It's all BS.
I visited Portugal when I was in high school and there was a teacher using a loudspeaker to teach 100+ kids on what amounted to a screened-in porch and they were two years ahead of us in math.
Meanwhile people are outraged because each American student doesn't have an "opportunity" for a good education because they don't have a perosnal computer.
Sparky--if you don't understand why schools today are better than the one-room prairie school houses you aren't serious enough to engage in discussion.
18 arrests this kid just made momma happy and proud by getting killed. She just won the lottery I have not seen dad on the news yet i wonder if he was a part of this fine young childs life. He was out living the thug life keeping it real and paid the price but momma gonna get a cadillllac.
He probably shouldn't have been a gang member.
He probably shouldn't have been hanging out with other gang members at a location known to be a gang hangout.
He probably shouldn't have been carrying a 9 mm semiautomatic weapon.
He probably shouldn't have run when police told him to stay still.
He probably shouldn't have grabbed his 9 mm weapon and turned toward police, however briefly. That action means he could have shot and killed the officer in a split second. Regardless of whether or not this gang member was shot in the back or the shoulder, by holding a weapon and ignoring the orders of a police officer, this person made the decision that cost him his life. This prolific criminal is the one who made it necessary for that police officer to defend himself.
18/24: I didn't say that a one-room school house is better. I said that there were aspects of the one-room schoolhouse that shouldn't be dismissed. We are so engrained to believe that the American public education system as it stands today is the right system. Meanwhile, India, China and Europe are starting to surpass us in science and mathematics.
I am being serious, but you have yet to tell me why an American education as it stands today is better than a prairie school.If you examine the current literature, educators do not dismiss aspects of the one-room schoolhouse. If you researched a bit, you may also find that students in a one-room schoolhouse learned how to read, write and perform complex mathematics. So why is today's public school system better? Is it the technology?
We need to examine the public school model in this country to understand why we are falling behind. You just state that it's better, like it is a fact. I have provided some evidence, why can't you?
I grew up on the West Side and I think that Aaron Harrison, with 12 arrests and affiliations with the Four Corner Hustlers was probably packing a 9mm and probably did point it at the police.
Growing up on the West Side I also realize that the quite a few cops in the 11th are racist and corrupt. So much money from drugs flows in that district, I'm not suprised how someone would be tempted to look the other way once in awhile in exchange for some extra cash..
With 12 arrests by the age of 18 it's clear that Aaron's parent's failed him miserably. Alot of my neighbors are neglectful parents. Driving down Madison you often see groups of kids, some as young as 6 walking down the streets unsupervised late at night. Last night I saw a 10 year old and a 5 year old walking at 11:30pm.
So what is Aaron's parents reward for being such great parents? A million dollar jackpot!
Growing up on the West Side is hard, no doubt. It seems though that the people who choose to stay in school and work hard and take care of their kids get the short end of the stick. My mother worked 2 jobs and struggled hard. While me and my brothers often missed out on parties for the sake of studying.
All the while many of my neighbors collect section 8, link card, WIC, and don't bother looking for a job or taking care of their kids. Meanwhile their kids stand on the corner and make $200 a day selling rocks and blow. That's more money than I make!
I've been harrased by the cops, but I've never sued. I've tried complaining, but you run into a brick wall. Never thought of suing, you just chuck it up to life on the west side.
What kind of test scores etc. do you expect the schools to produce have when half the students don't bother to graduate? I'm not sure you need to look at the schools as much as the parents and unfortunately a culture of nihilism.
#28
I commend you for giving your honest point of view. I grew up in a latino community and I must say that I truly believe ignorance is in every race. The problem with a lot of these respondents is that they are a bunch of liberals who have never experienced the west side or some of the toughest latino neighborhoods. I still live on the same block where I was born and there are idiots on my corner. There are kids who want better and then there are kids who glorify this stupid gangster mentality. There are kids who have both parents working/ staying at home but these kids want to fit in. I have taught many of these kids in my neighborhood and I always tell them that there are so many things outside of our neighborhood to experience. Most of my childhood friends are dead, in jail, now disabled or have not finished school and struggling to get by. I have also taught many adults from the west side in a different type of class setting and it astonishes me on how there seems to be this one-track mentality about various things, that you have truthfully noted in your comment. I do have the resources to move but I refuse to give up my block to some idiots and when they start trouble by walking to the rivals, I confront each and every one of them with my cell phone in my hand. I want them to know that I am calling the police. I want them to know that I am not afraid of them. I want them to know that they cannot endanger the lives of the young, innocent kids on my block. When the police come, I expect them to do their job. I have been mistreated by the police too and yes, I made complaints that fell on deaf ears. However, I do agree that Mr. Harrison was probably guilty of all that was said. If he had a gun and was turning to point it at a police officer, I believe they were justified in shooting him. Supposed common-thug gets killed by the police and it becomes a damn circus. What would have happened if the officer didn't react and the officer was killed by Mr. Harrison, Do you think it would have turned into the same damn circus? Yes, there are officers who abuse their authority but the majority of them do their job, whether by the book or not, the officers are there to serve and protect. What was Mr. Harrison's great mission in life- to get his 14th arrest by the fall season? I always say that my latino people fail to speak up at all -against injustices and I believe that the black community of the west side is being sucked into this inciting-riots type mentality by all these "reverends/activists" that have their own hidden agendas. To all the respondents who want to dig deeper, I invite you to the west side and to my neighborhood. I want all of you to dig deep into your theories, while standing on the corners of these commuinities. Lets see if you can keep track of the total number of times you will get jacked, battered, assaulted while standing on our corners by SOME of the community residents that you are sticking up for! These individuals are what plague OUR communities. So unless your liberal behinds have lived in OUR communities - Don't comment- Just keep your excuse-making asses at home reading up on your theorists.
I am not sure throwing a great deal of money at education would really solve much of anything, but some sort of accountability and incentive needs to exist for teachers. Payment to teachers as well as decisions regarding who gets jobs is greatly based on seniority, so it is difficult to reward good teachers or get rid of bad ones. A good teacher can teach without a great deal of money for supplies. Maybe increased salaries for effective teachers would be good--or increased salaries in general to attract more people to facilitate such a system.