Crime Emergency or Political Theater: When Statistics Lie by Telling the Truth.
By Norman Franklin
Norman Franklin
There’s a crime emergency in Washington DC. There’s an emergency brewing in Chicago. It’s not a crime emergency to the mayors of those two metropolitan cities. But it is a crime emergency to Pastor Corey Brooks, a Chicago anti-violence advocate.
The mayors face the fact that crime is an issue but not a crisis that warrants federal intervention. To Pas tor Brooks, it is a crisis. Blacks in his area are disproportionately victims of violent crimes, homicides. Crime statistics are troublesome, but not a crisis. It’s all relative— existential political theater.
The President signed an Execu tive Order on August 11 to override the D.C. Home Rule Act. The Order, titled “Declaring a Crime Emergency in the District of Columbia,” invoked Section 740 of the Home Rule Act. The statutory provision allows the President to assume control of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for up to 30 days. Emergency conditions must exist to warrant implementation.
The President’s rheto ric framed the district as “out of control” and “need ing law and order.” But FBI data and D.C. Metro Police stats. invalidate the claim. Violent crime was down 26%, overall crime in D.C. was at a 30-year low. Crime stats for Chicago are on a similar decline. Overall crime has dropped 22%. Despite measurable declines, the administration is floating a proposal to implement federal deployment to Chicago.
There is a perception gap, media optics, a Chicago neighborhood, that is stirring the climate for this perfect storm for political theater. Illinois Governor Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Johnson both oppose the plan. It’s an unconstitutional, unnecessary response to a manufac tured crisis. Pastor Brooks, founder of New Begin nings Church translates the dry stats into human pain and suffering. The CEO of H.O.O.D. (Helping Others Obtain Destiny) and South side anti-violence advocate sees weekend violence and black male victimiza tion as the crisis hidden in the declining crime stats. Brooks has staged prolonged rooftop vigils to bring awareness to gun violence and poverty in his community.
Headline crimes fuel the percep tion gap. Weekend carjackings, robberies in tourist areas, and shootings in nightclubs invoke fear, insecurity, and feelings that crime and violence are out of control. With 24-hour cable news media, the optics of out-of-control violence set the stage for the law and-order emergency. The perception is the reality, despite crime reports that point to crime management and statistical declines.
The success of Federal deploy ment to D.C., to validate, must be sub jected to nuanced interpretation. The presence of National Guard and Fed eral Police has reduced crime at public transit depots. Many arrests were for minor offenses. The crime emergency narratives allowed for aggressive cleanup of homeless encampments―homelessness was elevated to crime status and stepped-up seizures of illegal immigrants.