A Better Place

As published in Crain Chicago's Business by William J. Booker 3/6/20  

There are too many guns on the streets, too many cases of senseless violence and too many innocent young people dying. The violence and crime in Chicago has gotten out of hand. Our communities aren't safe anymore, and young people have lost their way. It would seem that most young men in the inner city have given up on trying to do anything positive with their lives.

Quite frankly, they want what they see on television: quick cash, promiscuous women, cars and drugs. It's the American Dream for a generation of kids living in poverty with no future to think of, nothing seems to matter anymore.

Mayor Lightfoot's recent anti-poverty summit was a great first step in opening discussions about helping impoverished neighborhoods and Chicago's youth by putting badly needed resources in neighbors on the South and West side.

"Her new Invest South/West program will hopefully breathe new life in many of the neglected & distressed neighborhoods like Englewood where I grew up."

If communities fail to meet the needs of the people who live in them--we all fail. Chicagoans can not afford to close their eyes to what's not happening in their neighborhood because the reality is crime is getting worse and is taking place all over the city. Our neighbors aren't safe anymore, and there are too many innocent people dying to senseless violence.

To deter crime people need employment opportunities that support a living wage, and programs that help them improve their daily lives. We also need better schools. People don't won't handouts. What they need is simply a hand up. It’s time to stop blaming the poor for being poor. Thankfully, the mayor is committed to delivering on her plan of economic equity for impoverished neighborhoods, and support for families trapped in a generation of poverty. It’s time we work together to make Chicago a better place to live for everyone.