Pubdate: Fri, 06 Oct 2006
Source: Oakland Press, The (MI)
Copyright: 2006 The Oakland Press
Contact:  http://www.theoaklandpress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2114
Author: Natalie Lombardo
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

ACTIVIST SAYS COUNCILMAN DEMONIZED YOUNG PEOPLE

PONTIAC - Comments by a councilman referring to the  criminal element 
in some neighborhoods as "terrorists"  demonize young black men, 
instead of leading to safer  streets, says local activist Quincy Stewart.

Stewart called a news conference Thursday at City Hall  to refute Joe 
Hansen's comments, as well as the City  Council's plans to ask for 
funds from the United States  Department of Homeland Security to 
contend with local  crime.

"I don't want to minimize the effects of crime on  anyone, but we 
have to be careful of this sociopathic  mentality of the war on drugs 
and crime. Our black men  are targeted by injecting the word 
terrorism with  youth. It suggests they are evil, menacing 
..  therefore, you can treat them any way you want to,"  said 
Stewart, a teacher at Pontiac Academy for  Excellence. He pointed out 
that when major acts of  violence such as the Oklahoma City bombing 
by Timothy  McVeigh or the recent school shootings by white 
men  occurred, the perpetrators weren't deemed terrorists,  but 
mentally unstable.

Hansen, who is Caucasian, said some happenings, causing  residents to 
fear leaving their homes because of drug  dealers, gunshots and 
bullies blocking cars in the  middle of the street, are acts of 
domestic terrorism  and the city should request federal funds to 
cover the  cost of fighting it. His comments capped a recent  council 
meeting where residents from west and north  side neighborhoods 
expressed anger and terror regarding  the drug dealers, prostitutes, 
pimps and lawless  teenagers who prowl their streets.

Residents said they're mostly afraid to confront the  troublemakers 
because they know they carry guns.  There's already been retaliation, 
with some residents  saying those who speak up get taunted and 
threatened.  Two residents of Thorpe Street cited shootings with 
stray bullets that narrowly missed young children.

But Stewart said his organization, Detroit-based  Michigan 
African-American Leadership Summit, wants to  assure the council's 
effort isn't an "all out war on  black youth."

"The youth in Pontiac have been completely abandoned  and now we are 
ready to thrown them out to the national  guard?" Stewart asked 
rhetorically. "We've closed down  all our community centers and 
recreation programs.  There's very little for them to do and no place 
for  them to work when they graduate."

"Operation Takedown" was carried out in late September  by the 
Pontiac police and the United States Drug  Enforcement Agency. The 
effort pulled about 30 drug  dealers and felons off the streets and 
resulted in 69  arrest warrants. And since January, the 
Pontiac  narcotics enforcement team executed more than 98 
search  warrants, made more than 800 arrests, confi scated more  than 
$2 million in drugs and $150,000 in forfeited  illegal drug money, 
said Police Chief Val Gross.

Still, arresting drug dealers and throwing them in  prison isn't the 
solution, said Kenny Anderson, a  Pontiac resident and co-chairman of 
the Michigan  African-American Leadership Summit. He suggested job 
creation, job training, prevention programs and  community dialogue, 
led by church and community  officials.

Anderson and Stewart said they've been approaching the  City Council 
with their ideas for the past decade.

"It takes the whole community to address this massive  problem. There 
are more black men in prison than  enrolled in college and that's 
unacceptable," Stewart  said.

The root cause of drug dealing and crime in Pontiac is  the 
struggling economy, he said.

"Most young brothers who sell drugs suffer from  economic 
deprivation. They're disconnected from the  labor force and are 
dealing dope to make money for  diapers or because their mom just got 
evicted. There are just no jobs on the local level," Anderson said.

"People resort to doing bad things when they're not  working," Gross added.

There have been 12 homicides this year.

Gross said he strongly disagrees with Hansen's  statement.

"What does that statement tell businesses that want to  do work here 
in the city?" he asked. "We're handling  our business. The men and 
women of the department are  working their tails off. They've been 
asked to do more  with less."

"You could shoot a cannon down Thorpe Street and not  hit a soul 
because it's been quiet. We did have a big  effect."

There have been more than three dozen layoffs in the  police 
department in efforts to balance a defi cit  budget. The community 
policing initiative that was  lauded for cleaning up the city's 
streets was scrapped.

Voters will be asked Nov. 7 to approve a 1-mill tax to  bring back 14 
officers and beef up vice operations.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman