The city of Philadelphia is in crisis. Over the past decade, violent crime has ravaged the birthplace of our great nation, and it deserves every American's attention. On Tuesday, March 9, six men were killed across the city in a span of 10 hours. Every part of the city was affected. Three men were stabbed in Southwest Philadelphia; in Uptown, two men were shot, one fatally and the other left in critical condition; in West Philadelphia another man was shot down. Later in the night, two other men were fatally shot within 10 minutes of each other -- one in South Philadelphia, and the other in the East Falls neighborhood in the Northwest part of the city.
These killings follow a pattern. In 2007, there were almost 400 homicides in the city of Philadelphia. That’s well over one a day. The Philadelphia Police Department mounted a serious effort, at this point, to limit the number of violent crimes in the city. The PPD increased in size and began programs to stop the violence. The programs were somewhat successful. In 2013, there were 247 murders, and that number was almost identical in 2014. Although the numbers dropped, that is still a significant amount of violence. In 2015, the number rose back up to 280. There have been 47 murders in 2016, alone. That is a four percent increase from last year at this time. The summer months are particularly notorious for murders, and the expectation would be for the 2016 homicide total to be well over 280.
Crime is not stopping in the city. There are many problems in communities that experience frequent murders. Poverty, high drop-out rates, but the number one problem is the prevalence of firearms.
In 2009, Strawberry Mansion High School received the notorious distinction of being named America’s most dangerous high school. Meek Mill’s alma mater, located in the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood in Uptown Philadelphia, is deeply impoverished. The poverty that surrounds the school holds its students back. Two-thirds of the students drop out. Incidents of assault and drug related suspensions are among the highest in the country. In this neighborhood, the problems that plague the city of Philadelphia are highlighted. Poor neighborhoods and poor schools create young people who have no future. The American Dream is inaccessible to the kids of Strawberry Mansion. It's in these types of neighborhoods that we see some of the highest numbers of violent crimes. The key to reversing the trend of increasing homicides in the city has to include plans to fight poverty and reinvest in the school system.
The most important step in reversing the trend of violence is limiting access to firearms. Criticizing the Second Amendment is risky because people feel very passionately about their right to bear arms. The Second Amendment protects the right of every citizen to bear arms. Nowhere in that amendment (or in any part of the Constitution) does it say that citizens have the right to take the life of another citizen. The fact of the matter is, in cities like Philadelphia, guns are used to take lives. For this reason, it is incumbent on both the state and federal governments to limit access to firearms.
This debate seems to revisited whenever there is a mass shooting in a place like San Bernardino or Sandy Hook, but the reality is that mass shooting account for less than 1% of the number of homicides in America. People get vocally upset about this issue only when 20 people are gunned down in one shooting, but people need to be just upset when 82 people are shot over one July 4th weekend in Chicago.
The vast majority of homicides occur in cities like Philadelphia, Chicago, and Detroit. In these cities it is easier to acquire a firearm than a high school diploma. Gun murders in America is an embarrassment. They show a complete failure of the nation to protect the general welfare of all its citizens (which is another Constitutional guarantee). You can place blame on whatever you like -- violent video games or America’s violent national history. These aren’t viable excuses. The sole reason for America's embarrassingly high murder rates is the Second Amendment. Take a look at murder statistics from other countries. The U.S. is near the top, along with countries such as Mexico which is notorious for cartel murders. Countries like the UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, and France are much further down the list. These countries don’t guarantee their citizens the right to bear arms and, therefore, aren't handicapped in passing laws that restrict access to guns.
The violent crime problem in America will not be solved until we the people decide that our right to firearms does not need to be protected by the government. Until then, we will struggle to pass basic, common sense, gun control laws, like mental health checks and federal databases. The time to make a change is now. We can’t wait while people are getting gunned down in the streets of America's great cities like Philadelphia and Chicago. The impetus is on the people to voice their support for sensible gun control laws. We, the people, have a voice; America is a democracy. Make this issue a priority because it is very serious. Mass shootings are tragic. Cities with more homicides than days of the year, are a national disgrace.
