Want to curb gun violence in Hamilton? Build social programs: expert

If Hamilton really wants to curb its rash of gun violence, says one expert, it should take a look at what youth programs it has available.

Jooyoung Lee, a professor of sociology at the University of Toronto, has studied gangs and gun violence in Philadelphia and south central Los Angeles.

The antidote to violent incidents such as the shooting death of 18-year-old Shariek Douse on Aug. 12 is plenty of programs to get youth involved in art, culture and recreation, said Lee.

Such efforts have made a difference in cities with much deeper crime problems than Hamilton — a city Lee says actually has an enviable crime rate.

I can only tell you what's very palpable in the neighbourhood, which is that there's an issue.- Coun. Jason Farr

Hamilton has had four murders this year, and 13 last year. That's hardly a reason to hit the panic button, he said.

But the city should still be making sure it has programs to keep at-risk youth engaged and feeling part of the community.

"We have a tendency to adopt a punitive approach to the 'youth problem,'" he said.

"There are other methods people have been using at the community level that have great results. It can't just be punitive."

Gun violence has made headlines this year after a number of alarming incidents.

In May, two people shot at each other in broad daylight at the corner of Main Street East and East Avenue, prompting Hamilton Police to tell passersby to check their cars for bullets. Hours later, there was a shooting at King and Ashley streets.

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Earlier this month, police investigated another report of daylight gunfire at Wentworth Street South and Rutherford Avenue. The suspects are described as three men in their late teens. 

On Wednesday, Douse was killed in the city's North End. It happened in the same week that police arrested a 14-year-old on 22 criminal charges, including seven gun-related charges. That same day, 18-year-old Brodie Nicholls appeared in court to be sentenced in the stabbing death of 14-year-old Jesse Clark. 

There tends to be a bit of moral panic after events like shootings happen in communities that are historically pretty safe.- Jooyoung Lee

The string of incidents has caused concern, said Jason Farr, councillor for Ward 2.

Police statistics show that crime is down, he said, but "I can only tell you what's very palpable in the neighbourhood, which is that there's an issue."

A little fear is normal, Lee said.

Shootings make people reflect on their own safety

"There tends to be a bit of moral panic after events like shootings happen in communities that are historically pretty safe," he said. 

"Even in communities that are totally immune and desensitized to this kind of violence, there's always a period where people reflect on their own lives and their own safety."

Gun and gang violence can also lead to other youth — ones that aren't involved in gangs — carrying guns out of fear, he said. Safety is a key reason people even join gangs.

You wanted to be at that community centre whenever you could possibly be there.- Jason Farr

That's why it's even more important to make youth feel like part of the community through arts and sports and other opportunities, he said. 

Farr agrees with this take. He grew up in a lower income home in the city's east end, "a product of a subsidized upbringing," he said. He credits the Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club with keeping him motivated and out of trouble.

"When I was younger, there wasn't a weeknight or a weekend when I didn't have ball hockey or basketball," he said. "You wanted to be at that community centre whenever you could possibly be there."

Where should the city focus its energy?

As a councillor, Farr started Skate the Dream, a program for low-income youth through the Boys and Girls Club. His counterpart on the Mountain, Terry Whitehead of Ward 8, borrowed the format to start a youth golf program called FORE.

Farr supported Mayor Fred Eisenberger's call at the council table to look into banning hand guns in Hamilton. But he sees these sorts of programs as the real answer.

"The more opportunities we provide for youth to stay off the streets and get involved in sports and recreation and community services…those are the kinds of conversations we should be having as a municipality."

The most important time to engage Hamilton's at-risk youth, Lee said, is in the 24 hours after incidents such as Douse's murder. The safer and more involved they feel in their community, he said, the less likely they are to pick up a gun in response.

But overall, "I think Hamilton will be OK," he said. "It's hard for people to make sense of these things. It produces a sense of fear. But the homicide rates are so low, in a lot of ways, other communities should be studying Hamilton."