On Saturday, November 3, 2007 from 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., Opa-Locka Vice-Mayor Dorothy “Dottie” Johnson conducted a COMMUNITY YOUTH CRIME-WATCH SYMPOSIUM at Florida Memorial University, 15800 N.W. 42nd Ave, Miami Gardens, Florida, for youth ranging from ages 9 to 18 years old, and their parents. As a follow-up to the successful training held five months ago, approximately 140 participants came out to learn ways of improving, protecting and keeping their community safe, and most took interest in establishing independent youth crime-watch clubs throughout Miami-Dade County. The symposium was hosted by Dr. Mary Williams, Dean of Arts & Sciences at Florida Memorial / Director of the Family Empowerment center.
Those in attendance learned that social change requires people, motivation and tools, all the elements present at Saturday’s symposium. With that in mind, the participant began to work on ways to develop strategy to begin changing the statistic which cited 1/3 of the today’s teens as having offered or sold drugs on school ground and 1/3 of seniors were engaged in physical fight last year. Alarmingly, many of the youth were not surprised to hear that ¾ of school shooters had confided in other youth beforehand about intentions, because they were in full agreement that aside from parents, friends are the number one influence on other youth.
The Youth Crime Watch program was established, during 1979, as a direct result of an out ragged neighborhood that united following the rape of a 12-year-old girl on Halloween night.
As one of three programs selected to testify before the senate Judiciary committee on school safety and violence prevention, the “Youth Crime-Watch of America” program has a history of producing positive results in school activities, community involvement, raising self-esteem, improving grades and more importantly, reporting crime. By pinpointing drug pushers, chain snatchers, and other situations, problems were decreased by three quarters in the first year, at the pilot location, North Miami Beach Senior High School. There was change in morale, school spirit and attitude among students, who learn that they TOO can make a difference!
Trainees were offered the opportunity to take an active part in problem-solving, and in reducing school and neighborhood crime. There was role-playing, situation-solving, writing, art, slide presentations, as well as a question and answer session, conducted by advisors, counselors and program sponsors.
According to Vice-Mayor Johnson, “It was evident as the children were mapping out problems, pinpointing exact locations were trouble exist in their neighborhoods, that they were saying …I want remain alive!” In fact, during the poster drawing competition, one young lady explained in the example of her artwork, that half of her picture was drawn upside-down on purpose to display the bad neighborhoods that are turning the world upside down, and the other half of the picture was turned right side up to display the good neighborhoods, which is where she wanted to live.
Setting another example were the young mentors from other Youth Crime Watch locations and faith-based organizations, all of whom were extremely articulate and came well groomed to be the role models for this group of new crime-watchers.
The Opa-locka youth now have the opportunity to join over 500,000 in community programs across 37 state and the District of Columbia, that range from elementary to college, with a movement that has extended to 21 countries over the world. The program has been recognized by Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. Bush and Bill Clinton.
In conjunction with Youth Crime-Watch of Florida and Florida Memorial University, the partnership included the Community Alliance (St. Thomas University), Save Our Streets Coalition, South Florida Community Dream Team, Experience Aviation, Florida Martin Luther King, Jr. Institute for Non-Violence, Crusaders Against Drugs, Opa-locka North Dade Front Pouch Council, The Billy Raven Foundation and The Rotary Club of Opa-locka & Miami Gardens.
Christina Gordon
Media Coordinator
City of Opa-locka
305 953-2821