From Das at Ex Seattle-Lefty Speaks:
Seattle’s politically correct mayor loves his stoplight cameras; her police chief weeps when her children of light kick and smash downtown glass; and her citizens congratulate themselves unceasingly for not living outside city limits. Welcome to smug, conformist, philistine Seattle. She looks in the Mirror and cries: “which is the fairest, hippest city of them all?” The Mirror replies: “You are. But wait! There is one who does not acknowledge your hip-ness. He is the EX Seattle-Lefty!”
Congrats Gil Kerlikoske on your career move into the Obama admin. Now you can emote, Oprah-like on the national stage about your sensitivity and personal family tragedy with drugs…now you can be sloe-eyed weeper-in-chief. You are the perfect choice for the government by NPR that the Obama administration is turning out to be…
Meantime, you left behind a south Seattle ravaged by gangs and gun violence and a record – what? – 12 dead black teenagers in 2008 alone. If you had any kind of soul inside you would have resigned your position. Or say, after the 5th dead black teen, you could have gotten angry. Crazy-angry. You could have gone crazy on the problem. But that would have meant naming the problem and that you could not bring yourself to do: murdered black teenagers. You would have had to take on the reigning education, sociology and ACLU victims rights’ lobbies. And that, effectively, would have ended your career. You would have had to fight through Seattle’s mechanized liberal/leftism, its Earth Shoe self-righteousness, its Whole Foods liberalism (as long as we buy locally our self-righteousness is intact, dead black kids be damned).
After murdered black teen #5 you could have gone crazy on the situation. You could have said to yourself: There will not be a dead black kid #6. Screaming for the national guard, posting cops in schools, calling for meetings with every black pastor in central and south Seattle, paying kids to turn in guns, calling out the parents, calling on national stars, Michael Jordan or Oprah or J-Z or whoever to come to town to talk to kids; you would have said to hell with budgets and protocol kids are dying; you would have staged a rally with corporate money at one of our stadiums (Saefco Field).
Remember, chief Kerlikowske, that beautiful line in David Mamet’s movie The Untouchables? Sean Connery, knowing the evil behind drug dealers and murderers, asks Elliott Ness, “What are you prepared to do?” In the movie the Sean Connery character was killed fighting murderous thugs. But here, in real life, we know what you were prepared to do: play it safe until your little Obama promotion came through…
In short: YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE ANYTHING SO THAT BLACK KID #6 WAS NOT NEXT. Instead you and Mayor Nickels gave us your weepy helplessness and we got dead black teens #6, #7 #8 #9 #10…you…you…
AAAAAAAARRRGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
Related:
Who to know, where to eat & what to do in one of America’s most diverse zip codes!
{ 23 comments }
Okay, so what can we do so black kids stop killing each other? Do you have any suggestions, or do you just bitch about it. Being a white man, I’m not all that concerned, and personally, I think that if I suggest anything, I will be attacked and labeled as another white person trying to tell people of color how to live their lives. So that’s my excuse, what’s your?
Nathan Parker- Sorry, I just want to be sure I understand your comment so I can decide whether to think about it some more or just totally disregard it. Are you actually saying you aren’t concerned about this issue because you’re figurin’ since you’re a white male, you won’t get shot? If so, I’ll just skip over the obvious, larger societal questions about that attitude and skip right to what you’re getting at… What about the woman recently sitting in her house watching tv who got shot by an errant bullet during this ongoing gang related neighborhood pistol pissing match? I don’t know the race of either the victim or the shooter. I don’t really think that’s relevant, last I heard bullets aren’t committing any title VII offenses. BTW I think you totally missed P 3 of the OP-ED where the author presents several “suggestions” that do extend the piece beyond a strict “bitch about it” rant.
Fair enough. I was wrong to say that I am not concerned. I am. I didn’t see any suggestions posted here. When I do, I will be more than happy to acknowledge them. I am just tired of the endless blame game. In my eyes it seems to be a gang problem, and while the police has a role to play in this, so do schools, parents, communities, etc., etc. Maybe I’m living in a cave, but I don’t see much being done by the community to rally together to fight this problem. Maybe they’re all scared? I can’t imagine I would like to get confrontational with some gang-bangers. I am just tired, is all, of reading about people getting shot down here. I guess my rant was not as well executed as I had hoped. My frustration cup runneth over.
This is going to sound opportunist, I know, but please hear me out…
We’ve got TEN local Little League teams that lost their sponsors this year due to the economic downturn. That’s more than 100 kids right here in our community that are trying to make good choices every day about how to spend their time, while gangsters drive by their middle schools flashing money, guns, nice clothes and fancy cars.
Meanwhile, we are struggling to raise a measly $500 so they can have the option to play baseball. That’s just wrong.
PLEASE, do something with your angst about youth violence in our community and give $10 right now. We are ONLY $200 away from telling at least a dozen kids that their community cares enough to pool their resources and help give them some options.
Thanks for reading and for caring.
Amber
PS. I feel you, Nathan. Really, I do. It does seem straight up overwhelming often times.
Nathan,
You’re absolutely right, people are scared. Including me. Rightfully so, and that’s where gangs get their power. Fear begets submission. I appreciate the overflowing predicament of your cup, and your need to find actionable solutions.
The thing I saw in the OP-ED piece was a call to action from a place of outrage. Sometimes as citizens, we need to express outrage. I think this is as opportune a time as any. We are so pc in Seattle. Outrage is for New Yorkers and their noisy car horns . We don’t beep, here in Seattle, after all…
But I think we need to get over ourselves and stop worrying about spilling our lattes on our new Pumas (not that this describes us all but come on, overall Seattle isn’t hurtin’ like some cities are these days!@) and DEMAND those tough calls from our leadership and the $$ that goes with it. Even in this economy, there is still $$. How’s it being used?
The OP-ED piece brought up some interesting questions, and like most good questions they lead to more questions… Police in schools? (But where to get them when SE Seattle is woefully understaffed already?, leading to…WHY is SE Seattle woefully understaffed???) How about paying for those guns? (Where will that $$ come from, and what will it be used for?, drugs?) What is going on with our corporate benefactors? A prepared, educated, oh and BREATHING graduating class does after all, benefit local businesses.
The Gates Foundation just REWARDED the SPS district for making PROGRESS!!! Not that the $$ aren’t well appreciated, but …exsqueeze me? This is the same school administration that just about incited the bloodiest merger of two local high schools imaginable until the community cried foul?
Not to be gratuitously explicit here (and sorry for the slight digression in topic), but I just about sharted my panties when I read the latest in the Times about the 10 million and the pat on the back going to MGJ and her team of happy crusaders. And the Times’ shrewd analysis that The Seattle Public School district is well on its way to an A+. There I go again, just thinking about it has me projecting some bodily fluids as I type. Sorry, now there I go overflowing…
Anyway, our “pc-ness” in this town has us looking for the neat and tidy (and expedient) resolution. The one where we can fade out with a happy song and a sigh and shrug as the credits roll on our happy ending. Instead, I say let’s be rude. Let us honk. Honk our horns. And burp. And fart, and maybe even spit. Hell, I’d do do worse if someone would call out this city’s response to our violence for what it is…
H A L F A S S!!!
Check out these stats on homicide by race:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/homicide/race.htm
When was the last time the NAACP addressed this issue? Have you every heard Tavis Smiley address this? How about BET?
How are the mayor and the chief responsible for the rates of murder in the black community?
4000 blacks were lynched in the Jim Crow south.
That figure is dwarfed by the thousands who die every single year in gang disputes, but everyone just accepts the bloodbath.
Have we defined deviancy that far downward?
I’ll match the next three $10 donations. Come on, it’s 10 bucks. If you shop at PCC, I know you can donate $10 right now to help support the kids in our community.
These are just a few suggestions………….they were put together by a South Seattle Crime Prevention Council Member and have been shared with the city……..some of the council members are using similar talking points now and Bruce Harrell thought they were right on point:
1.) Legal/Legislative support for youth who turn around their lives – eliminating felonies from their records so they can get jobs
2.) More Southend Infrastructure (Parks, Programs, etc.)
3.) Accountability Board for Youth Gang Initiative which includes South Seattle Crime Prevention Council Representative
4.) Secure the 110 officers the city promised the south precinct
5.) Stick to commitment to re-evaluate Neighborhood Policing Geographic Boundaries/staffing guidelines since crime has increased
6..) Slow down plans for high-density developments in the Rainier Valley/Corridor
7.) More partnerships with Seattle Public Schools, the City, & SPD
8.) Active mentoring programs for Southend youth which focus on quality relationships that have the duration to make an impact
9.) More community policing where officers have the time to know their neighborhoods and walk/bike around
10.) Bring back the gang units (request made in November of 2007 and it is apparently in work after recent high-profile shootings)
11.) Well thought out economic development in the Rainier Valley
How do #6 and #11 relate to the others?
I’m not saying they don’t. Just looks odd.
Nathan, unfortunately the shooters don’t have that great of aim and bullets don’t adjust their trajectory based on skin color…..point being, any one of us or our children can be a victim. Would suggest focusing on holding SPD, The Mayor, and Deputy Ceis accountable for treating South Seattle Fairly.
In regard to number #11 the community needs to have an economy to help sustain itself financially as well as the ancillary benefits of creating a community. At a recent meeting an official representative pointed out 50% of the businesses in SE Seattle only have two employees. In addition to the very small businesses, a lot of the larger businesses have shut down and moved away. Our kids need jobs to keep them occupied and to earn a living; mothers and fathers need jobs to sustain their families.
On #6…..there seems to be a push to centralize density within the Rainier Valley. Part of the push has been a result of legislation like House Bill 1490 and part of it has been related to the cost of land. Land is cheaper so Social Service Agencies can build more PROJECTS in South Seattle. I support social service agencies, but the SE Seattle has more than their fair share of subsidized housing projects. The combined push for density and for subsidized housing has significant environmental impacts including Safety. Increased density in SE Seattle needs to be slowed down for a couple of years to ensure the right infrastructure is in place. We need more parks, more parking, more sidewalks, better schools, more jobs, and better lighting in SE Seattle before they build sidewalk to sidewalk developments 6 stories high. What really irked me was when I was informed the Mayor does not expect SE Seattle residents to have or need cars………I couldn’t help wonder what Mysta Nickels expects us to do when we can’t easily access light rail in the rain, or why he thinks SE residents don’t need cars. It almost seemed as though I was being told we couldn’t/wouldn’t be able to afford cars. I digressed. Anyway, the only point seemed to be to develop the Rainier Valley responsibly.
In regard to number #11 the community needs to have an economy to help sustain itself financially as well as the ancillary benefits of creating a community. At a recent meeting an official representative pointed out 50% of the businesses in SE Seattle only have two employees. In addition to the very small businesses, a lot of the larger businesses have shut down and moved away. Our kids need jobs to keep them occupied and to earn a living; mothers and fathers need jobs to sustain their families.
On #6…..there seems to be a push to centralize density within the Rainier Valley. Part of the push has been a result of legislation like House Bill 1490 and part of it has been related to the cost of land. Land is cheaper so Social Service Agencies can build more PROJECTS in South Seattle. I support social service agencies, but the SE Seattle has more than their fair share of subsidized housing projects. The combined push for density and for subsidized housing has significant environmental impacts including Safety. Increased density in SE Seattle needs to be slowed down for a couple of years to ensure the right infrastructure is in place. We need more parks, more parking, more sidewalks, better schools, more jobs, and better lighting in SE Seattle before they build sidewalk to sidewalk developments 6 stories high. What really irked me was when I was informed the Mayor does not expect SE Seattle residents to have or need cars………I couldn’t help wonder what Mysta Nickels expects us to do when we can’t easily access light rail in the rain, or why he thinks SE residents don’t need cars. It almost seemed as though I was being told we couldn’t/wouldn’t be able to afford cars. I digressed. Anyway, the only point seemed to be to develop the Rainier Valley responsibly.
It would be nice if the SSCPC’s list was ranked, starting with the most immediate, concrete priority and descending to the more general, medium/long term stuff.
One of the most important things residents of southeast Seattle can do is participate in local community groups – whether they be churches, business associations, block watches, or community councils – and demand that those groups give the youth violence issue the sustained, hands-on attention it deserves.
Local groups should be leading the way when it comes to school reform, police engagement, oversight of the Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, mentoring, etc. Local groups should be banding together, building coalitions around the specific issues w/ groups in the CD and elsewhere, finding allies among the city’s political leadership, and committing to narrow fights for the resources this community needs. Regardless of what government does, local groups should be taking matters into their own hands, working toward solutions to specific pieces of the problem.
Enough of our righteousness. Time for everybody who tells themselves they care about crime and youth violence in our neighborhoods to get their hands dirty solving the problem, bit by bit.
Crime, especially gang violence, is a HUGE problem. There are no easy solutions. Perhaps the biggest problem is pointed out in the article by ‘Das’; city leadership. If city leaders don’t acknowledge there is a problem (lowest crime rate since the 1960′s?) how can you begin to solve it?
The quick fix? More cops on the street. While kids were killing each other last summer our South Precinct had staffing at 1970′s levels. We’re told that the South Precinct should be up to 105 officers in 2010. 105 officers a year from now? The same folks that are telling you that we’ve got the lowest crime rate since the 1960′s are now saying 105 officers is adequate? Well, maybe somebody should look into that? Maybe 105 is NOT the magic number.
The long-term fix? Stop the paternalistic, top-down, social engineering in southeast Seattle that has undermined our community. Let the community grow and develop organically. That means leave southeast Seattle alone. Get rid of the Mayor’s “action agenda”. Get rid of every city ‘agenda’. Every other community in Seattle has been allowed to grow and change and evolve over time. No other community has so many ‘agendas’ imposed upon them. Forced growth, forced density, forced concentration of the poor, lack of any city economic stimulus plan, lack of any city jobs programs, steering of social services agencies to southeast Seattle, lifing of the protective Special Objectives Area (SOA) overlay which restricted the dumping of social services, and so on. These factors, in combination, have weakened our community and laid the foundation for failure in southeast Seattle. These are just some of the reasons kids are killing kids in southeast Seattle.
Folks, history is being repeated here. Southeast Seattle has been through this before, although few remember the violence and problems of the 1960′s – 1990′s. Some of the posts on RVP demonstrate little knowledge of the history of the Rainier Valley but they’re quick to jump on anyone who’s trying to enlighten the populace. Don’t shoot the messenger. Reign in your egos long enough to learn about the history of the Rainier Valley before you critisize. And, save your vitriol for the Mayor and the City Council. Under their lousy leadership, our community is falling apart.
Want to help? First, register to vote. One member of the City Council was heard to say, “Why should I pay attention to southeast Seattle? You don’t vote in large numbers like other neighborhoods so you pose no threat to me”. If you’re already registered to vote then go out and register ten other people to vote. Then stay in touch with those people next November, drive them to their polling place if necessary. Second, get out of your Barcalounger and go volunteer. Do something for someone else, it’ll make a difference in your neighborhoood and you’ll feel good doing it. Third, call and write to the Mayor and the City Council. Engage with the local media, especially the dullards at The Stranger.
I’d like to end on a positive note: we can solve the crime problem, grow our local economy, preserve diversity, and improve the quality of life here. We’ve done it before. The community has risen up and forced City Hall to listen and to make changes. We can do it again. We must accept the responsibility to fix our own community because those we’ve elected are failing us. There is little reason to believe they will act without pressure from the community. What’s your passion? Find a group of like-minded neighbors and join their cause. Do it today.
Back to the kids….How do we donate?
Hi Jellody,
Thanks for asking! Hit the DONATE button in the top right corner or snail mail your check to the RVP; POB 18334, Seattle, WA 98118.
Please note: The PayPal option says your donations are going to the RVP, but every dollar we take in through the end of March will go to RDLL.
Thanks so much!
Amber
The cultural and economic problems plaguing Seattle have their source at a much higher level than the local level. The local level is merely the end result of a trickle down effect from the top where the source of the problem is. When Americans finally stop trusting the purchased mainstream media figure out that their government is owned by corporations (fascism) that have no reason or interest in bettering the lives of people at the local level — then things might start to change. That is, if the American people can figure out a way to topple a corporate coupe that owns the military industrial complex and the corporate prison system in the US. Trust me, these people are doing everything they can to keep you in the dark, and your shock or negative reaction in reading my 100% fact-based post is simply further evidence of this.
This, from the PI, looks like a very positive development:
The Seattle Police Department plans to add six detectives to its gang unit in an effort to thwart violence and street crimes around middle and high schools, interim Police Chief John Diaz said Tuesday.
In addition, the city plans to apply for federal stimulus money to pay for more school resources officers at area high schools in Central and South Seattle, according to officials working on the mayor’s Youth Violence Prevention Initiative…
http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattle911/archives/164418.asp?source=rss
Six detectives is a start. However, the gang unit used to consist of about 25 officers. Today we have five or six officers, I think.
I sure hope “interim” Police Chief Diaz will be more willing to work with the community than Kerlikowski. That will involve listening to the community, engaging with community leaders, and providing current data about crime statistics.
The SPD rank & file is quietly lobbying the community to nominate the current Police Chief of Spokane as a possible replacement for Kerlikowski. Apparently she’s uncommonly ethical, candid, and fair toward the community and the officers alike. (She probably doesn’t stand a chance of getting hired by Greg Nickels).
Word up, Anon. Anyhoo, I give a little credit where a little credit is due. Since solving our youth violence problem is going to be a game of inches, I think it’s important that “the community” acknowledge even little steps in the right direction. There’s nothing unsavory about allowing that six more officers assigned to the gang unit could do some good.
I’d love to hear from you as you learn it more concrete info about Kirkpatrick, who exactly is lobbying who in her favor, and what she might bring to the mix as chief.
Yes, the city does deserve credit for adding some members of the gang unit back, but it is too late to save the young kids lives that were lost. In October/November of 2007 the South Seattle Crime Prevention Council discussed bringing back the gang unit but the administration at the time balked at the idea saying it wasn’t needed. Maybe it wouldn’t have saved all the lives, but I do think it is time the administrators listen to the constituents who live within the community. With a new police chief, and hopefully a new Mayor, maybe CHANGE will come to the Rainier Valley in the same way it came to Washington DC. I wasn’t at Obama’s visit to Key Arena, but i heard there were quite a few boos when Mayor Nickels stepped onto the stage……..that was a very Democrat friendly environment so maybe the word has gotten out?
It would be tremendous if there was some position the Obama administration could appoint Nickels to. It would be great if we could get a trifecta clean sweep of our administration (Kerlikowske, Sims and Nickels) and appoint them to positions commensurate with their ability.
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