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Making a Christmas wish for peace
There was very little fanfare last week, when it was announced that the war in Iraq was over and that our troops were coming home.
Many in our community have contributed to the cause to give the Iraqi people a fresh start under a democratically-elected government. I am grateful for their efforts in that cause and also in the cause to root out terrorism in our world, which is ongoing with the campaign in Afghanistan. I hope and pray for a speedy resolution to that conflict in the upcoming year.
I also hope and pray that our own battles can be resolved locally. In 2011, our community buried two people far too soon who were victims of gang violence.
While our community has made great strides in preventing more deaths in this senseless conflict, including hiring new police officers, working to establish a Neighborhood Watch program and the recent purchase of the ShotSpotter system that will notify Quincy police whenever a gun is fired outdoors in the city limits, there is still more to be done.
Our own little conflict will likely not be settled until we can look at the root causes of gang violence.
I was taken aback earlier this week when I was typing in the letters to Santa Claus that the Class of 2012 wrote in 2001. One of the students who wrote a very nice and hopeful letter to Santa, is now awaiting trial for murder for one of the homicides in Quincy.
We really need to look at what happened in the nine years between the second grade and the suspect’s alleged crime.
Why is a life of violence and criminal activity with the very real penalties of prison or death more attractive to some youngsters in our community, than a life of being a productive, law-abiding member of society? How can we help our young people see that the choices they make will have a lifetime of consequences?
I don’t know all the answers, but I do know that ignoring the problem will not make it go away, and that while we should be tough on criminals, we also need to offer them better alternatives and a chance to change their lives if they so choose.
That’s why I think it is important in the new year, that we all do something to help fix this problem. We can all take a few hours out of our lives to volunteer for a youth program, we can all donate a few dollars to help with projects that will keep our children engaged in good, wholesome activities. We can all do our best to engage young people positively.
If we meet the challenge of gang activity and youth crime with only fear and anger, then I am afraid we will fail. We need more positive messages for our youth. We need to let them know we love them and want them to succeed and that they have bright futures ahead.
