Stop scapegoating immigrants after tragedy

Dear Editor,

The tragedy of Sheridan Gorman’s senseless murder rightly commands our attention and our determination to understand and, if possible, eliminate the root causes of such violence against the most precious and vulnerable among us – our children.

As a father of three, the youngest of whom is 10, I cannot imagine a greater degree of pain than what Sheridan’s family is going through. But in searching for meaning, and for solutions, we should be careful to address the right problems.

The first instinct, it seems, is to blame immigrants – outsiders who look different from most of us. The publisher of this paper poo-poos the well-established data showing that immigrants are far less likely than native-born Americans to commit violent crimes, claiming these statistics emanate from a single, Texas-based study that, because it contradicts his world-view, must be flawed. But there are ample studies, including one from the non-partisan Policing Institute, that show the same trends across race, income and educational lines. Among incarcerated populations, the study shows, 0.68% are immigrants, while 3.51% are U.S.-born. Yes, it’s true Mr. Freeman – immigrants are not the problem when it comes to violent crime.

The other instinct is to clamor for more law enforcement. “UNCUFF law enforcement,” shouts Yorktown Councilman Sergio Esposito. How much more uncuffed can they be than they are already – protected as they are by qualified immunity statutes and even the “absolute immunity” proffered federal police by the current administration? Here in Yorktown, police salaries and equipment are by far the biggest line item in the town’s budget.

Unleashing police and pilloring minority populations haven’t gotten us very far. We have the highest prison population per capita of any nation on earth (even higher than North Korea’s); meanwhile, we are the only “advanced” nation that has a rampant gun problem we cannot seem to solve; we behave collectively as if the only answer to violence is more violence – notably by the state against its own citizens.

Perhaps a better answer is to look within ourselves; how can we improve education, ensure access to a living wage and health care, and adequate housing for all? Access to mental health care is especially important as well, as shown in communities around the country that do address this issue.

What can we do to reduce the proliferation of guns on the streets? If we can’t control the number of guns, we can certainly regulate access to ammunition, just as we monitor access to antihistamines. (It bears saying that Mr. Esposito is a local arms merchant, whose American Arms company sells guns, bullets and even 'gift cards,' so he's got a vested interest in keeping people scared and demonizing 'the other'.)

It’s easy to denigrate alternatives to stricter and more punitive responses to violence as naïve pie-in-the-sky, but since the solutions of punishment and exclusion have failed to make a dent in the problems of violence and poverty, maybe we should actually try turning swords into ploughshares, as Isaiah would have it.

-Michael Hickins, Yorktown