Mayor Tuerk attributed our violent weekend to the number of guns in our community. That would be news to the State Trooper who was stabbed over the weekend in Berks County. Of course the problem isn't guns and knives, rather the denizens who use them.
There isn't an easy solution to the denizen problem. Pandering politicians, society and pop culture glorify that life. However, Allentown doesn't have to be so hospitable to the perpetrators. When the police see a car double parked, take the opportunity to check out the driver...in the least he/she is blocking traffic.
I understand that people are hurting from the violence, and that the rally at Promise Neighborhoods was an opportunity to share that pain.
Allentown is a municipality with a mayor and police department. Resources directed to non-profits such as Promise Neighborhoods are actually defunding the police. While Promise received combined $millions from Washington, Harrisburg and Allentown, the Allentown police department remains understaffed.
Tuerk sees Promise Neighborhoods as a solution to our troubles. WFMZ's report on the shootings ended telling us that Promise Neighborhoods went to the scene of all three shootings, to let the neighbors know that their resources are available.
photocredit:Ryan Gaylor/LehighvalleyNews.com
same old lame excuses,
ReplyDeleteI found it ironic that Batts questioned what the local government is going to do at his press conference. My question for him is what are you going to do? I was under the impression your organization was going to take ownership of these issues in the community in exchange for our millions.
ReplyDeleteanon@6:35: Batts wants the business community to step up with jobs. The truth is the business community is hurting for employees ...Perkins can't find waiters. What Batts really wants is the business community to step up with more contributions to his organization.
DeleteJust asking, what "services" does Promise Neighborhood provide?
ReplyDeleteRemember a few years ago when the Progressive Democrat propaganda was that there was “systemic” racism in our policing? What they did was exploit isolated cases of racist actions by individual officers and use them to tarnish the reputations of entire police departments. This was done purely for their own political gain, and not to actually solve anything.
ReplyDeleteTheir solution? Defund the police.
So what did Allentown City Hall put forward after directly Defunding the police became the obvious disaster that most of us knew it would be and was no longer an option? They’ve decided to promote actual SYSTEMIC RACISM, by putting groups like Promise Neighborhoods in between the police and the (mostly minority) communities that need more of a police presence.
Imagine for a moment if the crime problem were evenly distributed throughout Allentown. What would the wealthy, white residents of the city’s West End do to solve that problem (assuming they just don’t move)?
Would they start their own neighborhood crime watch groups to protect their properties and the properties of their neighbors? Probably.
Would they pick up the phone and call the police directly, to give them information and to have them respond quickly to even the most minor problems in the neighborhood? Absolutely.
Would they accept having a non-profit group run by a convicted felon being placed between them and the police force that is paid to protect them? NEVER!
And yet that is exactly what our Mayor, City Council, and Police Chief have given to those living in the poorer, minority areas of the city. It’s a two-tiered system that is the definition of SYSTEMIC, government-sanctioned racism!
The worst part is that it’s not even a fresh idea or one that’s succeeded elsewhere. In fact, these types of programs have failed across the country. The places where they remain are places where no rational person would want to live or visit.
Funding groups like Promise Neighborhoods is little more than supporting a government-funded protection racket. The only difference is that instead of residents paying the mafia for “protection”, city government is paying the groups like Promise Neighborhoods directly.
What needs to be done?
1) Stop digging the hole. Last year’s (2023) results should be enough to prove that the money spent on Promise Neighborhoods has been a waste.
2) Defund Promise Neighborhoods and groups like them. They will not solve the problem, and continuing to fund them gives them no incentive to solve the problem.
3) Spend more money on more police officers, and have them build the direct relationships with the communities they serve.
4) Target the problem areas until the problem is solved.
This isn’t rocket science. If the mayor, council or police chief continue to pursue this failed course of action, they need to be removed as soon as possible.
Brilliant analysis of the situation. I have never seen a better summation of the insanity that is Allentown and its city government. Thank you!
DeleteI agree w/ you 100%….It has been proven through the years that more please presents especially in high crime areas, have reduced gun violence and crime .
DeletePhiladelphia has just published their new statistics for the year and it has drop significantly because they brought our police officers that were in administration and put over 100 officers in crime ridden areas. That is the sole reason why the percentage of violent crime went down. It has been proven over and over how police presence is the
Solution. In the early 1990s New York City was the worst crime ridden place on the planet. During Bill Clinton’s administration they gave billions of dollars to law-enforcement. Most of it went to New York City where they hired a 30,000 new police officers. There was a cop on every corner he cleaned up that city Within six months crime drastically dropped
We have approximately 215 please officers if we could get up to 230 so we could have more patrols you’ll see crime drop. As
Council woman I have voted yes
every time for new officers. I am, and have always been adamantly against defunding police.
Most of our shootings this year was due to domestic violence.
It’s up to you citizens to really listen and research your candidates, look at the incumbent voting record listen closely and research new candidates.
I am a Democrat, but what is it say about our city when a Republican doesn’t even feel he has a chance of being Mayor or Council…. is that democracy?
Is that diversity? As far as our police department, I believe one of the best in the country we just need more of them.
Councilwoman, Candida Affa
Councilwoman Affa, what we need in our communities are officers who want to engage and help the communities help the police.
DeleteIf you attended a community meeting anywhere in the city you would find the same tired talking points from APD that fail to take into account the true number of crimes. What they present routinely are something they love to reference as "Part 2" crimes. Crimes are crimes. Can we agree? One crime being swept under the rug because it's "less" of a crime than another means the police have a talking point that "crime is down." We as a community are then sold this bill of goods and are not given the entire picture by these officers (sent by their command staff), and when pressed for a full set of data it never materializes.
If I had a dollar for every time I heard Chief Roca push the same tired cliches -- "unity over division" etc etc -- I'd be wealthy enough to offer this city an alternative to Promise Neighborhoods and the police department.
Mind you -- we have plenty of good officers on patrol who will recognize the problems going on in our neighborhoods and attempt to work with residents to reduce crime. But they are frustrated to constantly see their work impeded by a command staff far out of touch with reality whose only interest seems to be serving an equally out of touch administration.
Why we don't bring back the foot patrols we had under Mayor Heydt is beyond me. In our neighborHOOD, we had Officer George Weaver, and I feared for him every time I saw him patrolling... and it's 100 times WORSE now!!! We all made sure to keep an eye on him in the event he ran into trouble... he was a great guy!!!
DeleteThis malarkey of not being permitted to apprehend or even contact some of the "actors" we citizens must endure is also beyond me. Intelligent enforcement is needed... IE: some slobs double parked to "ratchet jaw" vs the poor guy unloading groceries or heavy items... guess who gets the eye of the police??? It's inside out, people!!!!