a new crown heights coalition

neene

errol louis, a crown heights resident, writes (imho) an excellent column for the daily news

below is the current one
for those who are truly concerned about crime in our community
or those who raise questions about who is concerned,
this would be a good meeting to attend.


It's time to tame the beast

The beast who murdered 16-year-old Chanel Petro-Nixon remains on the loose, unknown and uncaught. Nothing can remove the unimaginable grief of Chanel's friends and family, especially her parents, Garvin and Lucita - but a righteous tide of prayer and action is rising in Crown Heights, where I live and where the honor student's strangled body was discovered in June.
It's about time.

Assemblyman Karim Camara, who represents the part of Crown Heights where Chanel's body was found, has begun holding community meetings to address a frightening spike in violent crime.

The next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. next Thursday, Nov. 30, at Bedford Central Presbyterian Church on the corner of Dean St. and Nostrand Ave. Everyone who is worried about crime in Crown Heights needs to be there.

One important agenda item at the meeting should be an effort to get the attention of City Hall, which has devoted far too little comment or resources to what is nothing less than a public-safety crisis.

So far this year, according to NYPD statistics, murder in the 77th Precinct, which covers the area, is up 122% compared with the same period last year - 9 homicides last year, 20 this year. Rape is up 110% - 10 last year, 21 this year.

From this corner of New York, the never-ending chorus of self-congratulation from downtown about the city's low crime rate sounds like a bitter joke.

For starters, my neighbors will be calling for surveillance cameras and increased patrols on Nostrand Ave. Similar attention needs to be paid to Kingston Ave., where Chanel's body was dumped on the curb.

Better policing isn't only the job of the NYPD. Chanel's killer is hiding behind a curtain of community apathy and a sickening cowards' code ("don't snitch"). When we tear down the curtain, the beast will stand exposed. It's that simple.

Chanel disappeared about 6 p.m. last Father's Day, June 18, shortly after leaving her home at 1605 Fulton St., and her body was found in front of 212 Kingston Ave. on the morning of June 22, 2006.

Anyone with information that might be helpful should call (800) 577-TIPS. The reward for information that leads to a conviction stands well above $30,000.

I would like to thank the many readers who have sent ideas, prayers, poems and expressions of support for the effort to bring justice in this case. Please make it to next week's meeting if you can.

Thanks also to elected officials such as Camara, Assemblywoman Annette Robinson, Councilmen Al Vann and Charles Barron, Sen. Carl Andrews and Senator-elect Eric Adams; all of them have been front and center. Thanks also to the Rev. Al Sharpton for using his radio show and a guest shot on "America's Most Wanted" to publicize the case.

Other local pols, who have remained silent when their voices are most needed, will be named in a future column.

We have made a good start, but only a start. If Crown Heights is a true community, rather than a crowd of strangers who happen to live near one another, we will all keep up the pressure to find the beast who preyed on one innocent child and could be hunting for another.

Originally published on November 24, 2006

neene

I went to last night's meeting, the second held by Assemblyman Camara.

The goal of was to create a coalition that can address the problems facing Crown Heights as it continues to develop.
It was well attended both by the community and elected officials, but more important, it was clear that everyone in the room cared and was there to do something.

As people spoke about their concerns, the scope of the issues came to the surface:
it is not only the dealers & the guns,
it is the inadequate school systems,
it is not only the schools but it is the lack of programs & activities in place to keep kids from joining the streets,
it is not only the lack of services but it is parents who are not taking responsibility for their children's behavoir,
it is not just the parents but the lack of information about resources available to the community
it is not only the lack of information but the need to find new ways to get it out there, to make contact with people who aren't on line, aren't members of churches, who have no access to the "system".

By the end of the meeting committees were being named and people were signing up to be a part of them.
Thanks to the diversity in the room this meant that concerns ranging from economic development to "street" outreach were addressed.

The next meeting will be in January and I will post it.
If there is anyone who feels they have something constructive to add to this community
(from grant writing to mentoring to developing community programs) but doesn't quite know how to get involved,
this would be a great place to start.

alafairnadia

thank you, neene, for keeping everyone updated about these meetings. I'm sure I speak for many on the boards when giving my thanks, too.

bojolais

I am very appreciative. I travel 75% of my life for work so have only made it to one precinct meeting but I sent my letters about maintaining Franklin and Nostrand as part of the impact zone. So thanks for posting the updates...

tamara

much appreciated. As it is now I'd rather die than send my kids to school in the area. perhaps 161, but that's not my zoned school.