re: #300 Dark_Falcon

How about offering those communities alternatives to joining a gang AND using those police resources to protect and serve those kids and their families from the gangs who will resist those alternatives? There’s alot that can be done here,if we had the will as a nation to do it. Like,a little urban renewal,community gardens(for growing food as well as for aesthetic purposes),vocational schooling,drug rehab,crisis counselling and therapy for families in need,school improvement,bringing the community together and getting their input(so that people feel invested and their needs get met),engaging that community to help police itself,the list goes on and on. Some things work,some things don’t,some things will need to be adapted to meet the needs of the people who live there.

I’ve been a mom for most of my adult life and I can tell you,punishing people when they screw up is not a solution to anything. You don’t have to reward them,but purely punitive means haven’t worked,being more punitive isn’t going to make it work better.