Monday Morning Water Cooler Talk for January 30, 2012

Crime. It’s what everyone is talking about in our community. It’s in the papers, on television and everywhere you look in the media. It is the topic that most of the community is worried about.

But, Lowndes County is different than most communities. Instead of pointing fingers and complaining while doing nothing, our community has taken the bull by the horns. Neighborhood Watches are being formed, Facebook pages were born and citizens are rallying together to take our streets back.

For the most part the citizen’s response has been positive and proactive. There is a fear and rightfully so; crime has been on the increase over the past four or five months, but there has not been panic or dissent. This is a great compliment to our community.

It will take everyone working together: the police, government officials and the community to solve the problem of crime and disorder. The problem of crime is complex and lays within many different social ills and problems. And, there is no quick fix.

Over the next several weeks, The Real Story will address the problem of crime and its root causes on both the website and the print edition. The complexities of social disorder and the history of its origins will be discussed. It is not a one article ordeal, and such a complex issue deserves the time and space it needs to be completely addressed.

The first order of business is to discuss the first building block of safety, community awareness and the Neighborhood Watch program. The following information has been taken from the National Crime Prevention Council‘s website, and our organization encourages you to visit their website, http://www.ncpc.org/  — it has a multitude of information.

Sponsored by the National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA), Neighborhood Watch can trace its roots back to the days of colonial settlements, when night watchmen patrolled the streets. The modern version of Neighborhood Watch was developed in response to requests from sheriffs and police chiefs who were looking for a crime prevention program that would involve citizens and address an increasing number of burglaries.

Launched in 1972, Neighborhood Watch counts on citizens to organize themselves and work with law enforcement to keep a trained eye and ear on their communities, while demonstrating their presence at all times of day and night. (The program took off quickly: in just ten years, NSA data showed that 12 percent of the population was involved in a Neighborhood Watch.) Neighborhood Watch works because it reduces opportunities for crime to occur; it doesn’t rely on altering or changing the criminal’s behavior or motivation.

 Tips

• Work with the police or sheriff’s office. These agencies are critical to a Watch group’s credibility and are the source of necessary information and training.
• Link up with your victims’ services office to get your members trained in helping victims of crime.
• Hold regular meetings to help residents get to know each other and to decide upon program strategies and activities.
• Consider linking with an existing organization, such as a citizens’ association, community development office, tenants’ association, or housing authority. They may be able to provide an existing infrastructure you can use.
• Canvass door-to-door to recruit members.
• Ask people who seldom leave their homes to be “window watchers,” looking out for children and reporting any unusual activities in the neighborhood.
• Translate crime and drug prevention materials into Spanish or other languages needed by non-English speakers in your community. If necessary, have a translator at meetings.
• Sponsor a crime and drug prevention fair at a church hall, temple, shopping mall, or community center.
• Gather the facts about crime in your neighborhood. Check police reports, conduct victimization surveys, and learn residents’ perceptions about crimes. Often, residents’ opinions are not supported by facts, and accurate information can reduce the fear of crime.
• Physical conditions like abandoned cars or overgrown vacant lots contribute to crime. Sponsor cleanups, encourage residents to beautify the area, and ask them to turn on outdoor lights at night.
• Work with small businesses to repair rundown storefronts, clean up littered streets, and create jobs for young people.
• Start a block parent program to help children cope with emergencies while walking to and from school or playing in the area.
• Emphasize that Watch groups are not vigilantes and should not assume the role of the police. Their duty is to ask neighbors to be alert, observant, and caring—and to report suspicious activity or crimes immediately to the police.

In the end, it will be the community working together that makes any community a safe place to live. It will be the community that sets the tone and makes the government officials correct the problems contributing to crime. As always, the community rules.

Joseph St. John

A/K/A Mr. MoJo Rising

Note: If you still can’t find The Real Story in print, let us know at distribution@realstorypublishing.com and we will hand deliver you a copy!