All too often these days, we open the newspaper or turn on the radio or television and hear about another shooting in Omaha. The question often is not if, but how many shootings and how many were killed.
Over the past years there has been a great deal of rhetoric about the root causes of this type of violence. Lack of education, lack of jobs and a lack of parental involvement are all pointed out time and time again.
While we must all work toward finding solutions to these issues, the solutions will not happen overnight. Meanwhile, violence continues.
I cannot pretend to fully understand the fear that many people in our community are subject to on a daily basis, nor do I fully comprehend what it must be like to not be able to allow children to play outside or for neighbors to not be able to gather in friendly conversation.
What I fear is that many people are accepting this violence as the status quo, especially our young people. Because of this acceptance, they see a future that is anything but bright.
This is unacceptable.
A group of people gathered recently and formed a group called Enough Is Enough. This truly is a grassroots and noble effort. The group has moved beyond rhetoric to action. It remains to be seen if this is the answer to our immediate concerns, but they are doing something. We all need to be doing something!
This is our community, and every neighborhood must draw a line in the sand and send a clear message that violence will not be tolerated. Together, person to person, neighborhood to neighborhood, we must gather our collective resources and support one another no matter where we live. What affects one affects all.
You might think you are safe because you live in an area that is not currently directly affected by this violence. But, again, my fear is that we are not facing reality. Think about it: This type of violence is not going away without people stepping up and working with police and other officials to get these perpetrators off the street.
But until that happens, just like a cancer, it may be cut out in one place but recur in another, and that other place might be your neighborhood.
That is why we must all come together! Every neighborhood should support efforts like Enough Is Enough. Put signs out in your yard, on your block and throughout your neighborhood. Whatever it takes, we need to let the perpetrators of this violence know that they are not welcome and will be opposed in each and every corner of our community.
We must embrace those who are living daily with fear and let them know they are not alone, that we as a community stand side by side. We must do this so that our young people can see a future that is bright and full of hope.
Ron Abdouch is the executive director of the Neighborhood Center.
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