America The Violent Part 3
Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun - A History and present perspective of Violence in the Inner City
Geoffrey Canada was born in 1952 in the South Bronx of New York City. His memoir Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun: A Personal History of Violence details his upbringing. He speaks of learning about violence growing up and learning to survive in a cold and hardened place. He also speaks of his escape from violence and his call to go back and serve students first in Boston and then in New York City.
Geoffrey Canada founded The Harlem’s Children’s Zone (HCZ). “HCZ breaks the cycle of intergenerational poverty with on-the-ground, all-around programming that builds up opportunities for children, families, and communities to thrive in school, work, and life. From early childhood, education, and career programs to community outreach and wellness initiatives, HCZ opens pathways to mobility and prosperity.”
I’ve learned so much from reading Canada’s work and studying aspects of his life. The work that they have been able to do is truly remarkable. It is warring against poverty with love, skill, wisdom, strategy, resources, and resourcefulness. In his book, Canada tells us how violence evolved in the inner city and why he felt a strong call to give his life to the fight to create equal access and opportunities for youth and families. He also details how life in the urban environment became more and more deadly as things like crack cocaine took hold in the inner city.
He says, “Crack cocaine changed everything, seemingly overnight. As crack came on the scene in the very early eighties no one seemed to be aware of the devastating influence it would have on our communities, especially on poor communities.” He details how this impacted the young people he and his organization served, “For many of us who work with children, however, its impact soon became obvious. We began to notice more and more of our young boys being killed. As more and more children moved into drug sales, one of the first things they began to recognize was that they were in a dangerous business. Because guns and the drug trade go hand in hand, it didn’t take long before children involved in the trade began to want guns and to buy them with their illegal profits.”
I remember having a similar conversation with a local school principal. He shared that he’d worked with students in Birmingham for over 30 years and noticed a trend. From the on-the-ground school leadership level, he could see that gang activity, drug usage, and violence were on the rise. He shared that “whenever you see an increase in organized gangs and drug usage, violence is sure to follow. They go hand in hand.” The origin of this phenomenon may be debatable, but no one can debate the effects that guns and drugs have had on our communities.
Seemingly, for the last 30 to 40 years, there has been an ongoing conversation around youth, communities, and violence. This conversation has ebbed and flowed but has been constant since the 80s. When we discuss violence in our cities, it is impossible to get away from violence impacting youth and “Black-on-Black Violence.” Depending on if you are approaching the issue from a granular or a ground level, republican or democrat lens, or scholarly or practitioner approach, you may come up with very different origins and very different solutions to the violence impacting youth and communities.
Some start with slavery and the ongoing legacy of white supremacy as the origin and root cause of “inner-city violence.” Others point to broken homes and an abandonment of the nuclear family structure. Another group may say that abolishing the police and reimagining law enforcement is the answer we need. In contrast, others believe it vital to double down on policing while proclaiming the need for law and order. For years, I’ve heard the debate about rap music and hip-hop culture as major contributing factors to violence and the degrading of morality. Who is right, and who is wrong? What solutions will help us to navigate this treacherous water?
Here are a few thoughts on the issues from different sides:
America was founded on racism and white supremacy (millions of black people were enslaved, trafficked, and murdered, while genocide was perpetrated against millions of Native Americans)
This legacy has left an indelible mark on our nation's history and social fabric through systemic racism practices like "black codes" and "Jim Crow Laws."
Our family structures are broken. Why? That's complicated, but it didn't happen overnight. Too many broken homes lead to severe challenges for too many. (We all know of stories of resilience, but what about the others?)
More opportunity exists for all people, but it's still not enough. For too many children, their zip code determines their educational and health outcomes.
You can come from a two-parent home and still struggle, but two-parent homes are a viable solution to address violence and poor life outcomes.
Communities of color have been historically over-policed, and there are too many stories of living while Black to ignore people's cries for justice. Many Black people don't feel safe in their communities and haven't for a long time.
These are complicated and messy issues, but that should not deter us from understanding the cause and seeking solutions. Why? Because youth and families are worth it. Everyone has intrinsic worth and value, also known as dignity. This dignity is not a result of where someone was born or who they were born to, but it comes from the fact that they were born in the first place. I believe that every individual is stamped with the image of God. They are valuable because they were created with value. Too many lives have been lost and are being lost because we are afraid to tackle BIG issues.
The Harlem Children’s Zone and Geoffrey Canada are tackling complex issues and seeing lives transformed. Check out this talk that Geoffrey Canada gave last year. In it, he provides a clear vision for the work ahead.
I have tagged many articles in this post, all of which I have read in full. Some of the tags are opinions, and others are historical. Please take the time and read those that interest and challenge you. I do not agree with everything that I have linked to, but I humbly engaged with it. Let’s enter into a conversation about these hard and complex issues that affect real people. I often ask people to engage with me on my content, and sometimes, I have people take me up on it. However, too often, it is from people who want to tell me how wrong I am for considering diverging opinions. I have little patience for dishonest engages who rarely listen but have all the answers. I would rather engage the curious.