Comments on: Does It Still Take A Village?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:42:29 +0000

I looked up the directory on the CB9 website. That directory is now at least 5 years old! Is there anymore more updated? Harlem has changed tremendously in five years.
http://cb9m.org/docs/CB9_Youth_Comm_Svcs_Dir.pdf

By: Central Harlem

Central Harlem — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 01:37:26 +0000

“Among all the new wealth that is being created one has to ask ‘How come none of these new condo buildings have youth programs or community centers?’”

illoquent, if you look around, you might be surprised.

The Dwyer is going to host a new facility for Community Works, nonprofit arts education and arts presenting organization. Geoffrey Canada and the Harlem Children’s Zone serves 8,600 low-income children. It has smart-parenting classes; it has all-day preschool; it has a K-12 charter school. It has tutoring and mentoring and antiviolence initiatives.

But this is nothing new in Harlem.

Community Board 9, which makes up only a portion of Harlem, put together a Youth Services Directory a few years back with then Columbia University Graduate Student Christina Vastola, CB9′s Larry McClean and Christina documented more than 800, yes 800, organizations in CB9 with children’s services.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:53:50 +0000

To the last anon poster, um yeah. Let’s throw that solution out the window. I mean, come on! Do you REALLY think it was the kids who attend the rec center who were shooting? Besides, people are talking about structured programs for kids, not just having a rec center but no no reliable and responsible adult to show them how to use the center to their best benefit. Here is an example. In high school we had a hall monitor…an adult male. His job was to be a role model and keep us in check. Instead, he was like one of the kids and used to flirt with girls and even sold weed on the side. The school could argue and say, “well at least we have a hall monitor.” See, two different things here. Responsible mentors and just a warm body are not the same.

To an earlier commenter, having the rec centers and having access to them are two different things. There is high demand for these services and they fill up fast. A friend tried to enroll her boys last summer and another friend was feverishly looking for something for a teen girl. It’s not as easy as it looks.

I agree with the poster who recommeneded Brotherhood-Sistersol. Positive organization. Big Brothers and Sisters is another stellar organization. I know plenty of plenty who have mentored through them. Boys and Girls Club is also great if you can find a good program.

By: anon

anon — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 23:52:58 +0000

Wasn’t there actually a shooting a few years ago by some kids at the police recreation center? So much for the theory that community centers are the answer when shootings are happening at the center.

By: Odilia

Odilia — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:47:06 +0000

Young people are not shooting each other because of a lack of community centers or activities for young people.

The NYC Department of Parks and Recreation has a center at 123rd st and 134th st in Harlem – MEMBERSHIP IS FREE FOR KIDS 6 TO 17.
NYC has a tremendous amount of free and low-cost events sponsored by different organizations:
DYCD
YMCA
YWCA
The Point
Advocates for Children of NYC
- to name a few.

However, you do need a parent or guardian to sign kids up for these programs.
The real problem is that the kids do not have enough stable relationships with adults. Any child without guidance, regardless of his or her race and ethnicity, will get into trouble if unsupervised.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:27:39 +0000

This was a well thought out piece. As someone who grew up in a major city, I had the strong guidance of my mother to raise me. However, all the love, discipline and guidance in the world wasn’t enough to keep me from going in the wrong direction. My mother raised me as a singe parent. She couldn’t do it alone. If it weren’t for the many organizations like the YMCA, Salvation Army (summer camp) and others offering scholarships for low-income children, I would have probably been another statistic. Yes, kids need parental involvement, church and outside organizations (mentors) to survive these mean streets. They are exposed to a lot at an early age and don’t have the tools to process all the imagery that affects them. I could go on and on but I’ll stop here. Thanks for writing this.

By: iloveharlem

iloveharlem — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 17:46:58 +0000

Thank you James. Let’s work together on this. And here’s just an article to give some background on why some black people live like they live. I know you will not read a book on this.

Psychologists will tell us that if you treat people as if there are animals, they will act like animals. And the history of black people even now is just that. If you don’t know you are human and not a dog, you will act like a dog.

Why is it that we understand what the Holocaust did over a 12 year period, but not what has happened to black people for hundreds or years?

http://www.joyleary.com/docs/breakingchains.pdf

By: James

James — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 16:29:47 +0000

I think the comments are too harsh here. Look, yes in a perfect world everyone would have understanding and supportive parents. But as we all know, one of the symptoms of poverty is the destruction of this bond. The issue is about breaking the cycle that these parent are themselves caught up in. How to do that? Well as a former teacher, I can say “not very easily.” It could be a teacher, minister or other concerned individual who takes initiative and sticks their neck out to take a youth “under their wing.” Organizations like Big Brother/Big Sister and Brotherhood Sistersol are most effective because they fill that role in a professional and established manner. I would say anyone really interested in making a difference and advancing the dialogue should look there first. In the meantime, please keep it positive.

By: anon

anon — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:32:40 +0000

It is not lack of community centers, it is lack of parenting, or absentee fathers and truly awful roll models, it all starts at home people. There are many poor people in the world who take the time to parent. Sounds like the same blame mentality.

By: sick of it

sick of it — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:29:45 +0000

“…all pointed to laxed gun laws, lack of youth centers, and a frustratingly high level of unemployment …”

None of this will do anything to improve the sense of parental responsibility in rearing children that is the true root issue in this situation. All of this is just an attempt to place external blame and yet again claim victim status rather than looking within for the solutions. It is much easier to blame others than to own up to one’s personal responsibility.