Stand Up To Violence organizes
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BRONX TIMES REPORTER,BTR AUGUST 7-13, 2020 21
BY AL D’ANGELO
Wouldn’t it be refreshing
if our elected offi cials could
just say “I made a mistake”?
That seems to be impossible
if your hold public offi ce. We
are told at an early age that
it’s ok to make a mistake,
that’s how we learn. We hear
it from our parents, our teachers,
and our religious leaders
that “to err is human.” That
may speak volumes.
We are told to keep an
open mind and listen to the
ideas of other so we can make
a more informed decision.
Funny, I have seldom, if ever,
heard an elected offi cial admit
a mistake or even admit
that a member of an opposing
party came up with a good
idea. Members of Congress
have been accused of spousal
abuse, arrested for fraud, accused
of writing bad checks,
arrested for assault, have
credit reports so bad they
can’t qualify for a credit card,
arrested on drug related
charges, arrested for shoplifting,
were stopped for drunk
driving but were released because
they claimed congressional
immunity. Gee, I guess
they do make mistakes.
Are we as a country so unforgiving
that we would not
forgive a mistake or the person
who admitted to making
one? I think not, as long as
they learn from their mistakes.
The Congress and the
state legislators make the
laws that affect us, the governed.
They should make
those laws after consulting
with the people whom laws
were meant to serve. Instead,
many laws are made
as a knee-jerk reaction to a
political situation.
A perfect example is the
defunding of the police, a
motion that was put forward
as a result of George Floyd’s
death. The fact that 99 percent
of police offi cers agreed with
the charges brought against
offi cer Derek Chauvin didn’t
seem to matter. It became
open season on the police. Offi
cers were told to stand down
and allow looting and arson
to go unpunished. They were
told not to react to verbal
abuse, so they stood as targets
for the lawless throngs of
rioters, defenseless because
of political decisions.
The results have been a
disaster, especially in those
communities the politicians
were trying to placate. The
vast majority of people are
not in favor of defunding police,
that’s not saying that
systems do not need to be put
in place to make sure the offi -
cers do not abuse their power.
The rise in crime especially
in our minority communities
have seen a dramatic increase
and who suffers most, the decent
people who become shutins
for fear a stray bullet will
end the life of a loved one.
Who’s to blame? Who
failed to fi x bail reform? Who
stopped “stop and frisk”? Who
took plain clothes offi cers off
the streets? Who changed the
rules of engagement to limit
the force used to make an arrest?
Who broke the spirit of
the police offi cers? Whose
fault is it that over 800 police
offi cers retired at the
end of July? Many of our cities
have become war zones,
maybe it’s time to say “I
made a mistake” and fi x it before
more innocent children
lie dying the streets. Could
someone then please tell us
which lives matter?
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BY JASON COHEN
On July 30, the non-violence
activist group Stand up to Violence
(SUV) held a “Shooting
Response Rally” on Allerton
and Barnes Avenues.
This was in response to the
recent uptick in violence in the
borough, particularly the weekend
of July 24, where there were
several incidences, including a
man who was shot and killed by
2758 Bronx Park East.
Residents, activists and
politicians attended, including
Assemblywoman Nathalia
Fernandez and Senator
Jamaal Bailey.
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Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez speaks
at the rally.
Courtesy of Carjah Dawkins-Hamilton.
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