THE EDITOR, Sir:
JAMAICA IS not unique in crime and violence. Only a few years ago New York City once had the distinction of being the most dangerous city in the world. With a determination to rid the city of the plague, two successive mayors crafted plans to make New York a safe city once again. Jamaican authorities can study New York's strategies and implement them where necessary to help Jamaica in its fight against crime and violence.
New York in a short span went from being one of the most murderous and feared cities in the world to what is now termed the safest large city in America. In a span of only a few years New York's murder rate plummeted from a high of 2,300 murders in 1990 to under 600 since then, and has continued on a downward spiral for more than 10 years. This represents a reduction in the murder rate of more than 70 per cent and overall crime by 75 per cent. Car thefts fell from 150,000 per year to less than 20,000 per year.
CRACK EPIDEMIC
Between 1984 and 1989 the crack epidemic and gun prevalence gave arms to thugs and gangs which roamed the city sometimes controlling entire communities. Neighbourhoods were virtually under siege.
The innocent often got caught in the crossfire, there was a rise in drive-by shootings, and police were powerless to make a dent in the murder rate. In addition the Italian Mafia, the Colombian cartels, the Jamaican Posse along with different ethnic groups became a state within the main state.
They controlled the drug trade and the streets. New York at the time was then termed 'Dodge City'. Shanty towns of cardboard boxes, squeegee men and homelessness inundated the city. One estimate placed New York city's homeless at 36,000.
David Dinkins, the sitting mayor at the time, crafted a new plan to fight crime. The city hired 10,000 new police officers paid for through the introduction of a new lottery. That increased the total to a formidable force of 40,000. Civilians were hired for police administration duties, freeing police officers for beat patrol; the city hired more judges to reduce the time spent processing criminals. Entire neighbourhoods were flooded with cops, and the introduction of community policing.
In 1991 Mayor Dinkins lost the election to the no-nonsense tough-talking former United States attorney Rudolph Guliani, who hired as police commissioner William Bratton. Together they plotted strategies to break the crime stronghold. They increased the use of technology to track high-crime areas, and increased the number of undercover and narcotics officers.
TRUANT PATROLS
The most significant of all the strategies involved punishment for quality-of-life crimes including urinating in public areas, jumping turnstiles at train stations without paying, drinking alcohol on the street, playing loud music, littering, etc. Truant patrols removed school children from the streets during school hours and parents were held accountable.
At the time there were over 800,000 people on welfare. All able-bodied men and women who received welfare payments were put to work cleaning parks, streets, drains or enter job training programmes. Many went on to find regular jobs. After five years the welfare payroll was reduced by more than 50 per cent.
In some instances, New York residents had to sacrifice their freedom for the sake of a safer city. All illegal nightclubs were shut down, police were given authority to stop and search suspects and everyone had to travel with some form of identification. New York virtually became a police state.
The churches and community organisations also played a major role. After-school programmes, job training and community outreach programmes kept children off the streets. Today's homeless count is less than 5,000. The murder rate is less than 600 and the population has grown by more than 900,000.
The most difficult aspect of implementing a portion of this plan in Jamaica is whether or not law-abiding Jamaicans are willing to sacrifice any of their rights and freedom for the safety of the nation. If Jamaicans are determined to save the nation then they must be willing to make the sacrifice.
Amnesty International. Jamaicans for Justice et al must allow for strong actions to be taken without too much interference. Jamaica has one of the world's highest murder rates and new strategies must be implemented to deal with the problem.
New York has experienced a rebirth and the once dangerous neighbourhoods like Times Square, Harlem and the South Bronx are a testament to the new crime-fighting initiatives of determined people.
I am, etc.,
KEITH SOUDEN
ksouden@hotmail.com
Brooklyn, New York
Via Go-Jamaica
