Thursday, January 31, 2013

Stop and Frisk May Not Be Main Cause of NYC's Low Crime Rate

When people are looking at explanations for NYC's low murder rate, has anyone considered that immigration may be a more important cause than "stop and frisk." Unlike Chicago, which has a large number of young people who grew up in inter-generational poverty, a sizable number of NYC youth are children of first generation immigrants or first generation immigrants themselves, and are immersed in social networks, especially churches and mosques, which tie them tightly to their families and their immigrant communities In the Bronx, NYC's poorest borough, the African American and Puerto Rican populations, who have lived in the borough for three or four generations, are declining, while the West African, Mexican, Dominican and West Indian populations are growing rapidly. The phenomenon is happening, with different immigrant groups, in Brooklyn and Queens.. I think people should consider the impact of these demographic shifts before recommending that "stop and frisk" be brought to other cities which are suffering from a wave of violence.

No comments: