On Crime In Skokie

In addition to offering extremely local news, it seems SkokiePatch has given a voice to the residents of Skokie. This is a potentially useful tool; it allows people to give a direct opinion on certain events – such as give praise on things done well, or give input on which companies should be brought to our community. Unfortunately, the voice of Skokie seems to be increasingly negative. 

Over the last couple of years, I have seen literally hundreds of angry comments about the state of our community. This is important, too, because it allows people to voice their concerns and show that they’re passionate about what happens in this community. However, some of these people are overdoing it.

“These people” tend to pop up in the comments section every time an article mentions crime and use SkokiePatch as a forum to bash our mayor, trustees, and police officers. This is going too far. We elect our mayor and trustees, and I have spoken with police officers in Skokie – even seen them in action – and it is ludicrous to say that they’re “not doing anything” just because there is still crime in Skokie.

First of all, let’s be realistic: by now even Andy Griffith’s “Mayberry” would probably have at least as much crime as we do. Skokie is still relatively low-crime. Yes, things have happened here that make people uncomfortable. Is this okay? NO. Do we read about stabbings or people getting gunned down? On rare occasions, maybe, but it’s not a regular occurrence. If you know of a village where nobody ever fires off a gun, nobody ever gets robbed, and nobody ever dies in a drunk driving accident, please, tell me where this is because I’d like to know their secret.

Second, our police officers are not Batman and Wonder Woman; they rely on YOU to call them when something is wrong, and often they don’t hear about a crime until after it’s been committed. Meanwhile, yes, they write tickets – and this IS a necessary part of keeping our community safe; I’ve seen the way some of my fellow residents drive.

Third, instead of pointing fingers, DO SOMETHING. If you genuinely care about your community, log off the computer and PREVENT CRIME. Here are some things you can do to protect yourself and hopefully prevent future crime:

• Get a large group of people together and have a Crime Prevention officer teach you how NOT to be a target

• Take self-defense classes. If you know self-defense, share your knowledge with those who can’t afford expensive classes.

• Tutor students – show them the value of education and make it easier to achieve so they stay in school.