(The Center Square) – Chicago activist Theo Hardiman is calling for unity in the battle to overcome the city's rising crime numbers after new data revealed violent crime incidents even though October jumped to its second highest level in the past five years.
Of the 29,260 violent crimes reported over the past 12 months, Chicago Police Department statistics show aggravated assault cases rose 6.4%, with Black residents the most vulnerable.
“We have to work together in a coordinated way so that we can reach everyone like a safety net where we can catch all these young people before they cross the line,” Hardiman told the Center Square newspaper. “My message is that we work together, that we are united so that we can reach more of these high-risk individuals.”
As the longtime CEO of Violence Interrupters, Hardiman said there's a reason at least some of the numbers are trending where they are.
“I really think the police have withdrawn,” he said. “Based on all the criminal justice reform policies that are here now, there is no real coordinated effort to help keep people safe, especially in the African American community. I know good policing can succeed, but at the same time, policing has failed in the black community.” It's as if at night, you don't see the police anywhere else unless there's a car accident.
And then there are the policies that Hardiman insists have been equally harmful to the cause of violence prevention.
“A large portion of anti-violence funding has become political,” he said. “If you're not on the politically correct side, you may not receive funding to help reduce gun violence in Chicago or help reduce violence in general. We have to take the politics out of the police. We have to take the politics out of violence prevention services. This is where we “We fail at it. We have to stop the players before they cross the line.”
Data show that Black individuals in the city are 5.4 times more likely to be the victim of an aggravated assault than white residents, and that 80% of all such assaults over the past year occurred on the South and West sides. Mayor Brandon Johnson's neighborhood in Austin is home to most of the attacks.
“It's clear that the strategies are not working when it comes to effective policing strategies being implemented in the Black community,” Hardiman said. “Many perpetrators of violent acts know that the chances of being caught or convicted may be 70% in their favor.”
As the number of aggravated assault cases increases, data shows that the arrest rate in such cases is still only about 1 in 6 cases.
