Sunnyside Needs A Conversation On Both Problems And Solutions
May 31, 2011 2 Comments
Sunnyside needs to have a meaningful conversation about both problems and solutions. By Sunnyside, I mean everyone in the community. By community, I mean Sunnyside, Outlook, Mabton, and other nearby areas that may or may not be in the city limits. By everyone, I mean all of us.
What I am about to suggest can be implemented in a multitude of ways, by any number of churches and organizations. Yes, I mentioned churches, and I will come back to that in a moment.
In a recent post, I mentioned some things I have heard in the community about why we have a gang problem that is so disruptive to our quality of life in Sunnyside. The series of “I blame” statements have really ticked off some people, that would just rather not have that kind of conversation. You know the type of person I am talking about here, they might be a family member saying something like:
“It’s really not proper for us to discuss your uncle’s alcohol problem.”
They will say this to you after your critical statement, immediately following your uncle’s arrest for DUI for the eighth time.
Much like families and individuals need to admit when alcoholism is a problem, we as a community need to come together to find solutions to our gang problem. Ignoring the issue, or not wanting to discuss it will not help the situation.
“Blaming” people or organizations will not solve the problem, but we need to understand different perspectives to help us all work together. All of the “blame” statements I listed, have been things people have said to me since I moved here. There are more that I did not list, and I am sure you have heard enough to fill entire books yourself.
I met an acquaintance of mine for coffee recently, and he shared with me an idea for churches to implement a mentoring program to help with youth. He said that he believes the median age of Sunnyside residents is 25. This means we need to engage this youthful population in more substantial ways than we are doing now.
Personally, I like his idea. I am aware of some conversation taking place between the City Manager and Council Members about the feasibility of starting Boys and Girls Clubs here, or having Big Brothers Big Sisters programs in Sunnyside.
“Big Brothers Big Sisters is proven by independent research to improve children’s odds for succeeding in school, behaving nonviolently, avoiding drugs and alcohol, and breaking negative cycles.” Source: Big Brothers Big Sisters
I am in favor of all of these types of approaches.
There is no silver bullet that will solve what is a deeply entrenched problem that exists in a culture that has allowed it to grow.
News coverage of late has reported on suppression plan ideas from the Sunnyside Police Department. These are critical in eliminating the really bad offenders from the City. However, there is more that will need to be done by others outside of the law enforcement community.
If mentoring programs can help some of our youth, I am all for them. Let’s continue that conversation in Sunnyside. Let’s talk about some concrete steps we can take to stop the violence, while engaging those that are in the age group where they are most susceptible to falling into the destructive lifestyle of a gang member.
This should not be something we put off on government, although local government may be in a position to help facilitate some of the efforts. We need churches to engage the youth directly, and in a meaningful way. We need businesses and individuals to support these efforts, financially, and through volunteering.
To defeat the enemy, we need the entire community involved. The police department’s gang elimination strategy recognizes that other agencies and organizations need to help in this effort.
Let’s all have a meaningful conversation about it. We can not ignore the problem, and expect things to improve.
Related articles
- 1 teen killed, 1 wounded in Sunnyside drive-by (thenewstribune.com)
- Speakers At Republican Club Address Bird Bombs and Gangs (blogsunnyside.com)
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Mr. Raines,
For once I agree with you, at least in part. The community of Sunnyside needs to come together in a multitude of ways to take the city back. Bringing a Boys and Girls Club to the city would not only benefit the city, but would put the city in a place of leadership for all of Yakima County. This organization will not only bring the opportunity for the children of Sunnyside to have activities and a safe place to go after school or during the summer, but also brings the opportunity for mentor programs. Mentor programs are one of the most important and effective ways to combat the gang lifestyle.
As a member of the Americorps School Safety Team, part of my job was to work with at risk youth. For many of the kids (6-12th grade) I worked with all they needed was an adult who treated them as if their life had value. This attitude is something that is also key to changing the life and attitude of an at risk youth; if we continue to discuss this issue tossing around words like “enemy” then we are going to continue to push these kids toward people who will support them and react against these negative labels.
Personally, I think we need to start by changing our own attitudes about the kids who join the gangs. For each gang member there is a story about why they joined or why they want to get out. For example, I know a former gang member who told me the story of his entrance and exit from the gang. This individual told me that all throughout elementary school he was bullied and beaten up on a regular basis, by the time he reached middle school he was so used to the bullying and teachers not doing anything, that he was looking for an escape. Between middle school and high school, he grew a few inches and developed muscles; thus when he started high school and the first bully came toward him, he decided to fight back and that is what he did day after day, until a boy, who was in a gang, offered him protection. So, the boy joined the gang and stayed for two years and avoided bullying for two years. In his junior year of high school, the boy was in a shop class and the teacher told him to ask himself the following question: “If you were an employer, would you hire you?” The boy said he could honestly say no, so he decided to turn things around and spent his last two years of high school getting out of the gang, improving his grades, and developing a skill. Today he works full-time in construction and goes to school at night, studying to become a police officer.
To me this is a prime example of turning a negative into a positive. All this boy needed was a positive role model who was willing to treat him with respect and to invest in him. Thus reading comments or hearing comments where people refer to these kids as “illegal immigrants,” “the enemy,” or just “wanting to get rid of all of them” is disheartening.
We all need to stand together to find a solution, but in order to do that we have to first recognize that these are kids who need and deserve positive influences. They deserve choices: choices to continue on their path and jail; choices to get out of the gangs and to become positive contributors to their communities; and finally they deserve to be treated as human beings.
Therefore, each of us needs to look at the language we use in public and in private; we also need to look at bringing or creating programs within the community that will build a stronger community, and that will give these kids the opportunity to get job training, internships, and jobs. Denying them employment, as a recent contributor to the DSN suggested is only going to continue to expand the divide among the community.
Jason: Thank you for this. We do need to have a larger conversation as a community. There are many issues and they all seem to be related. My hope is that this conversation will lead to the opposite of the blame game, that we all begin to take ownership and responsibility for our community.
Jeanine, I agree 100%. While I am personally uncomfortable with labeling any one of God’s people the enemy I understand SSPD’s position. I’ve met with the Deputy Chief personally and the piece that isn’t in the news is that he understands the larger context of what is happening in our community and what needs to happen to change it. Frankly, they need help. The police cannot solve this problem alone.
I see our gang issues as symptoms not as the problem.
I believe this community can rise to the challenge. God wants better for this community and I believe His heart breaks on a continual basis for the youth in this town.
Blessings,
Cameron Garcia
Lead Pastor at Oasis Community Church
PS. I did 2 years of AmeriCorps as well, specializing in asset based community development. Yay AmeriCorps!