Thanks to our guardian angel Mayor Bloomberg, we no longer
have to worry about those nasty trans fat globules clogging our
arteries. We need never fear second-hand smoke in the workplace
or, for that matter, any public place in the city. Now, as soon
as the mayor bans knives, bats, blunt instruments, and violent
high school students, our children hopefully will make it home
alive.
Unfortunately, the mayoral edicts were not made in time to save
the life of 17-year-old Taishawn Bellevue, who was fatally
stabbed in Union Square Wednesday while a marauding group of 50
students rampaged through the Farmer's Market in what police are
calling a dispute between rival public schools. Where is the
outrage, and why isn't this incident being condemned on the front
pages of the tabloids? Are the sleazy antics of Hollywood
teenagers more important than the needless death of an unknown?
Although my husband and I could little afford it, we sent our six
children to parochial school. School safety was not our primary
motive. We regarded a religious education as necessary for our
children to deal with the complexities and amorality of today's
society. We also knew that the other parents who made similar
sacrifices for their children's education would be more demanding
of their children's performance, and thus more involved. Catholic
schoolchildren may not all be perfect, but they do not rampage
like the gangs that descended on Union Square.
I must have missed that anarchic display by only minutes, because
when my downtown bus passed Union Square I saw nothing out of the
ordinary. The merchants' stands were decorated in seasonal colors
and shoppers were milling around toting their purchases. I was
surprised the following morning when the teenager's death was not
a front-page story in the tabloids. Could it be that because no
guns were used and the NYPD was not involved, it's not as
newsworthy? Tell that to the Bellevue family grieving over their
loved one's murder.
This incident, however, harks back to the bad old days when New
York City was awash with gangs, and their rumbles inspired drama
such as that in "West Side Story" and "The Young
Savages." Whips, chains, knives, even swords were the
weapons of choice, but these rumbles usually took place in my
neighborhood, Spanish Harlem, or in Harlem. That this latest
incident took place in Union Square, where tourists gather and
the middle class roams, is a troubling scene that should send
chills up and down the mayor's spine.
These students don't care much about getting into trouble with
adult New Yorkers. Do you know why? This city is now wuss city.
We don't step up and fight anymore. Take away our rights to eat
what we want and smoke if we dare, we'll sit and grumble but do
little to fight back. These children know whom to call to bail
them out of trouble - the ACLU and race-baiting demagogues citing
discrimination.
The most dangerous criminals in the city are underage, and we've
let them know how cowardly we've become since the Giuliani era
ended. Kill thousands of innocent workers in the twin towers and
watch us stand by looking at a hole in the ground five years
later because we don't want to offend anyone's feelings. We've
had cops killed in my neck of the woods and we can't figure out
how to punish the perpetrators. Isn't that encouraging to
potential murderers out there?
Still, we keep hearing these glowing statistics of how safe this
large city is and how crime is going down. Oh, really? Maybe if
we'd be truthful about how dangerous this city has again become,
that young actress wouldn't have dared to say to the Staten
Island youth when he pointed a gun at her: "What are you
going to do, shoot me?" He did.
While Mayor Bloomberg goes around town trying to disarm
law-abiding citizens, these children in the ghettos and tough
parts of town know exactly how to get their hands on weapons of
destruction. What law can you pass that will teach children the
difference between right and wrong when their parents won't do
it?
Maybe children today don't know their place because adults have
lost their ability to command respect. Parents are more
interested in being friends with their children than earning
their respect. The mean streets of my youth remained localized
because the city itself was still ruled by individuals with
courage and character.
Now New York has become a very dangerous city again because our
cowardice has allowed animals to roam free.