Quietly, we are seeing parts of the Caribbean's fractured landscape continue to erode as it looks for a clear path in managing economic decay, politics, crime and policing. Several communities known for their beautiful sunsets beaming off the warm Caribbean Sea have been plagued with the proliferation of violence. These atrocities do not discriminate - from law enforcement officers, young and old to anyone else in their path.
A few decades ago, along these shores few people owned a licensed gun. It was the local business owner, and law enforcement. Today, even your taxi drivers and the grocery baggers are armed.
The death toll each year consistently outnumbers the calendar days in some countries. This mayhem combined with poor economic conditions has created a complexity in balancing personal freedom, crime, and perception.
For many, gambling has become the only hope of a way out of poverty and, silently, it is creating more poverty while lives are being lost more frequently than the daily games are being played.
Downtrodden communities, corruption, inadequacies, inequality and crime, whether self-inflicted or not, is ubiquitous, and a propensity to compare with other nations is understandable. No one community is immune from violence or poverty. Even in Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital, The Washington Post reported poverty has increased between 2007 and 2014. It is also not rare to see police unions overwhelmingly frustrated and confidence in the force's leadership shaky.
Recently Baltimore, Maryland mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced that she would not seek re-election, stemming from an ongoing uptick in crimes, and the wounds of an unarmed black male who died in police custody. Unfortunately, this is not about Baltimore: These issues are closer than you might have noticed.
In countries like Trinidad, Jamaica, The Bahamas, Guyana and others, it is not about the ethnic, religious, or cultural differences that forever link to the slave trade. The recent headlines are depressing. For some looking in and others inside looking out, a paradigm shift is needed.
The consequential revolving door that continues to call for past leaders or current to quit or force a quick election as the solution has never solved crimes and economic stagnation. These frustrated strategies only deflect the true systematic social decay being kicked down the road for the next generation. If you continue to do the same thing and expect different results, you are bound to fail.
For many years, I traveled north and played on an older soccer team despite knowing I was not prepared. My connections guaranteed me a spot even over others who were more qualified. After the last whistle, I left broken arm, toe, strain, or other serious pain and even contributed to a few losses, when I could have enjoyed success on the sidelines.
Public safety and policing
It seems pride and power outweigh intelligence when a fundamental crime control policy is lacking. The struggle between policing and politics is not a new paradigm. Studies have shown that this institution always had close ties to politicians since the early 18th century when it was formed in Metropolitan London.
Although some argue that the concept of policing was to used to keep slaves from running away from their masters, policing, whether political, reform based, or community centered, continues to play a vital role in public safety.
The fact is, regardless of the community, it is tough being a police officer. They consistently see the worst of people and, yet, the expectation is to stay calm. They take on ordeals most of us would not even fathom, from death, to the mentally ill, intoxicated and rude people, while balancing reality and perception. At the end of each shift, they simply want to get back home safely to their families.
In any system, there are some bad cops, just as there are bad businesspersons, doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc., but they cannot do it alone. 'Tough on crime' strategies without resources and community support only allow criminal enterprises to thrive.
Sadly, some business owners who tried to make remittances more accessible through Western Union are now being robbed a few yards from a police station. Today, some major money transfer companies have placed limits on funds due to fraud and the inability to curtail the perpetrators.
Crime
Recent statistics show that the murder rates in most of the English-speaking Caribbean countries are at or above 30 per 100,000 people. These rates are six times U.S. levels and 15-30 times those of most European countries.
Personal responsibility
The approach of blaming your government for lack of business opportunities as criminals kill and rob stores that serve the community needs a rethinking. This is not much different from an unemployed student who parades through the community streets with the latest model car, fashion and technology gadget without a legitimate source of income and is later killed in a police shoot-out. Rather than blaming the police, one should take an assessment of the parenting, or the lack thereof. Sure, you can question due process.
Criminal mentality and criminogenic issues cannot be managed with the same old political ploys and law enforcement bullets. This approach may create a bounce in the polls while crime remains unmanageable. Moreover, selling an election as the solution to crime only benefits the concept of absolute power and that only corrupts absolutely as many have argued.
Criminals use the same "divide and conquer" tactics to their advantage as the politicians. On many of our shores politics is like a contact sport. After the votes are counted, the wounded are sidelined for decades. The leftover fragments are not due to the failure of law enforcement.
Politics
In 2014, British Prime Minister David Carmon gave a speech on the centenary anniversary of World War I. He highlighted his willingness and the importance of utilizing local ideas and not just national initiatives and government actions. Although some might argue this could be due to the lack of assimilation by some groups.
The Caribbean should considers this idea, or build on its core argument.
"Out of many, one people," should remind leaders of what is important. Politics should not be a sport of allies and aristocrats, as is believed to be the roots of its origin. It is critical to make it serve people and reduce the complexities around its role in society. However, this is not about revising the colonial period that some blame when today's crime and poverty are difficult to reverse. Subconsciously, the British footprints are still apparent in parts of the region, and quietly some are debating whether the British Pound should still be the official currency.
The region's criminal and political decay today actually reminds us of the past, when colonial rulers discriminated between people according to race, class and gender, as many studies have noted, in order to assert their own identity.
The idea of politics should be about prosperity and happiness for all. Ongoing erosion cannot be about political bickering. It is time to rebuild the middle class and use this method to address crime.
The complexities
The lack of opportunity and a fundamental decay in government and education, combined with unqualified teachers, has left the youth - especially those leaving school - undereducated and without hope. Several are now roaming the streets asking for handouts.
These images only drive fear into visitors and the working class. It takes more than a curfew to create a perception of safety. Like the oceanfront without a levee to sustain overflow, many of these communities are just bouncing around while getting both criminal and political hits.
As a result, society has eroded and scattered. It should not be about class, race, gender or sexuality. Focus should be on attracting investments and creating an environment where returning residents can feel comfortable
These conflicts, poverty and crime of opportunity combined with destructive adversarial relationships require detailed contextual analysis of each community and its relations. It is time to develop solid economic systems to deter crime.
Despite opposition, one has to move away from bureaucratic and dysfunctional power conflicts.
Holding perpetrators accountable while helping the poor is essential. However, upward mobility starts with 'The Man in the Mirror', as said in a song by the late pop star Michael Jackson. You do not have to be the pope to lead your people to prosperity.
o Derrick Miller is a trained U.S. federal law enforcement officer that has been in the criminal justice field for more than 14 years. This article is published with permission of Caribbean News Now.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
