Addressing the underlying issues: Roundtable conversation covers what's being done to reduce Racine violence

Dec. 28—RACINE — The professionals on the frontlines of redirecting area youth out of the path of gangs and prison were recently invited to the North Pointe United Methodist Church to speak at a roundtable on violence in the city.

The roundtable included Mayor Cory Mason, Maurice Horton, the county's community violence prevention coordinator, Jody Bloyer, Racine Unified School District's chief of schools, RUSD's Community Connectors, Nakeyda Haymer, representing Voices of Black Mothers United, and Lt. Walter Powell of the Racine Police Department.

The conversation was facilitated by North Pointe United Methodist Church, 3825 Erie St., to help residents learn what is being done to reduce violence in Racine and how they can be more involved.

The event was titled "Building a Safer Racine: What's happening and how you can help," and was held on Dec. 11.

The message was hopeful as the members of the roundtable outlined the structure that has been created to work with troubled youth. However, the speakers did not gloss over the underlying issues driving the rise in crime.

Horton has been working to keep youth out of gangs for more than two decades.

He acknowledges the recent spate of violence is as bad as he has seen it in that time, but the community conversation has focused on violence and not the issues that drive violence, such as poverty.

"We don't talk about where the kids are coming from, and the things the kids are seeing, and the things kids are doing without," he said.

Reality

Jamario Farr Sr., a RUSD Community Connector, spoke of the need to understand where some of the city's youth are coming from.

He noted many of the young people have lived in homes with "toxic, abnormal, dangerous mindsets" for 13, 14, 15 years and more "that are only just now getting interrupted."

They are taught to hit back, that "get back has no expiration date," and not to call the police when there is a problem. They are not taught conflict resolution.

"It starts at home," he said, and the young people are not coming from homes that have seen a lot of success.

It is going to take time to turn that around.

Community Connectors are technically the bridge between students and the services they might need, but they are so much more than that. They are more than mentors.

They assist students with life, in school and the community, with a focus on gang diversion and disciplinary intervention in an effort to stop the flow of young people going from schools to prisons.

They guide the students as they interact with other students, teachers, administrators, their family members and law enforcement. The Community Connectors place an emphasis on decision-making, reiterating over and over that decisions have consequences.

There is something Farr wants the public to know: The professionals working with troubled youth are making progress.

Farr spoke of young men from the north and south side sitting down with one another for conversations while in detention. They were initially reluctant, he said, because blood had been shed. However, they ultimately did have a meeting and a conversation.

The Racine Police Department recently shared a slide that showed the City of Racine with a dot for all the shootings and calls for shots fired. The hot spot on the map was the spot where the south side meets the north side, where the gangs clash.

Reducing gang violence would go a long way toward reducing the violent crime the city is experiencing.

Farr called the conversation between gang members "progress."

However, he also issued a warning, "What we see right now, it's not going to be a quick fix."

Comments

As those present wanted to know what they could do to help, Bloyer said from her perspective, a change in narrative would go a long way.

She assured the public the youth were aware of the negative narratives circulating about them and the schools they attend.

Bloyer continued and said when a young person hears one negative comment, it could take ten or more affirmative comments to undo the damage from the one.

She continued, "I will tell you right now, if you don't think that impacts our young people, our children, if you think our children don't hear those comments and start believing it about themselves, I'm here to tell you right now you're wrong," she said. "Our children know what people think of them."

Because of the negative narratives, they come to school believing what people say, that they are not worth anything.

Bloyer said among those who have to provide the positive narratives are the Community Connectors and their one-on-one interactions with young people.

Bloyer said the group has many success stories the public is unaware of. Just recently, a young man said he wanted away from the gang life and was ultimately baptized.

Sometimes on social media, people refer to youth at-risk for gangs and crime as thugs, but the Community Connectors see young people in need of love.

Johnnie Ford, one of the Community Connectors, just recently intervened with a young man who was having a violent outburst.

Ford did not call security. Instead, he hugged him and showed him love because that is what so many of these young people need, he said.

Relationships

One of the things the public can also do is understand where change comes from. Some in the community might think a harsh punishment will bring about change.

Powell told the audience writing a ticket to a young person is the easiest thing to do but change will only come through building relationships.

"How's writing a ticket going to change any behavior?" he asked. "It's not."

Powell is a longtime Community Oriented Policing (COP) officer.

COP officers do not work in COP houses, he told the audience. The officers might go there to write reports or use the house as a gathering point, but the work of COP officers takes place in the neighborhood or the store, wherever people are gathering.

Powell shared with the audience an interaction he had with a young person over the course of many years.

After that young man got out of prison, he came to Powell for help in getting away from the gangs and onto a different path.

On Father's Day, Powell received a text from that young man who said without Powell's guidance he might be dead or still in prison. He wished him a happy Father's Day.

He said for every negative thing he sees as a police officer, he sees 10 good things.

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