Safety on Our Streets; Safety in Our Schools
During the past two months, some in our neighborhood have felt insecurity on our streets and our young people have taken the lead in demanding more security in our schools. These events call attention to the on-going need for us to do all we can to create a more secure environment in our communities.
The police have no leads on a disturbing incident that occurred March 25, according to Major Neil Klotzer of the Atlanta Police Department Zone 6. Just after midnight, a Hardendorf Avenue resident saw people apparently breaking into a car on the street; when they became aware of him, they took off. He called the police who found nothing. The next morning, another neighbor found a bullet hole and a bullet inside her house and a second call was made to the police. At that time, the first neighbor remembered hearing noise the night before; other neighbors remember a noise resembling a car backfiring. While the two events are logically related, the police have no information to help in apprehending the perpetrators. Fortunately, all escaped a potentially tragic situation.
Major Klotzer reminds us of our best course of action, given the national epidemic of car break-ins. First, minimize our risk by leaving nothing in our cars. Secondly, if we witness an unfolding crime, call 911 rather than responding ourselves, thus protecting our own safety and increasing the likelihood of the police apprehending the suspect.
On a more encouraging note, young people in Lake Claire have joined the nation-wide activism of high school students following the murders in Parkland, Florida, on February 14. Hardendorf residents Diego Gonzalez, a Grady High School freshman, and his brother Felipe, a junior, were organizers and participants in the National Student Walkout on Wednesday, March 14. With the support of teachers, Principal Betsy Bockman and a superintendent more open to the protest than most in metro Atlanta, 80 to 90 percent of Grady students walked out of class and held a moving program in their stadium. Diego and Felipe joined about 300 students who, wanting to make a stronger statement, remained outside for an additional two hours after others returned to class, setting up 17 backpacks for those killed and sitting in small groups along the length of the field. Most students received a consequence of detention for this extended action.
Diego Gonzalez expressed concisely his motivation for joining the protest: “I don’t want to feel in danger for my life in school, where I should feel safe.” He holds strong convictions about guns in our society and presents them with impressive maturity. His most fundamental belief is that private citizens should not own guns and that prohibiting guns would mean less violence. His near-term goals are to pass stricter gun laws, including a ban on assault rifles. Although he will not be voting for four more years, he has thought about the low voting rate of young adults, which he attributes to their opinion that voting won’t make a difference and to their feeling that voting is “lame,” not fun or exciting. Clearly, Diego will be trying to change this perception and increase young adults’ voting rate. During an April 10 interview, Diego expressed his hope that Grady students would again be active in the April 20 National Day of Action against Gun Violence, marking the nineteenth anniversary of the Columbine High School killings in Colorado. Thank you, Diego and your fellow students, for your leadership!
Many Lake Clarions joined the student-led March for Our Lives on Saturday, March 24, in which 35,000 Atlantans marched from the Center for Civil and Human Rights to the State Capitol! This struggle for meaningful gun legislation continues.