Crime
The first reading in the section on crime will be William Finnegan’s two part piece from “The New Yorker” entitled “Out There.” This is an excellent choice for many reasons. One is that it has a lot of local appeal. My students will be able to identify places geographically, which is always interesting. The main reason this is an excellent choice, however, is that it is so well written. It is an example of cultural journalism at its best, as the writer is emotionally involved in his subject and in the article. The article explores the choices (or lack of) that one black family in New Haven makes, including dealing drugs. Since this is a choice a lot of my students have made, it needs to be addressed in the classroom. Through the eyes of Terry, a pseudonym, we see the real drug world. We see the money, the clothes, the appeal to the girls, and the life and death risks he takes. One warning, however, about this particular pieces is that is powerful. It hits close to home on an explosive subject. Many of New Haven’s students have had friends and relatives who have been killed from dealing drugs. Many live in the neighborhoods described in the article as “slave quarters” (Quinnipiac: Terrace for example) and it will open wounds that need to be treated gently and responsibly.
Some of the questions I intend to explore with this piece are:
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1.) What alternatives to selling drugs does the article show? (Yale, religion, professional sports, Rap Star, McDonalds) What do you think of these choices? Which one would you make? What other ones do you think are available to black kids from New Haven?
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2.) What role does T V. play in the family’s lives? What role does T.V. play in your life?
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3.) What role and or responsibility do girls play in the drug scene?
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4.) What do you think about Virginia Henry who started the organization “Tenants Against Drugs, Dammit”?
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5.) What reason does Terry give for not dealing drugs anymore?
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6.) What is community based policing? Is it located in your neighborhood? What do your neighbors think about it7 What do you think about it?
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7.) What kind of mother do you think Anjelica is? What are her good points? bad points? What does the author of the article think Anjelica wants out of life?
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8.) What does the title “Out There” mean? Have you ever felt out there? What advice do you have for people out there?
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9.)Why are most drug dealers young black men?
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10.) Write an editorial on possible solutions to the drug problem in New Haven
Terry makes the decision not to sell drugs after he turns fifteen because he could then be tried as an adult. And as an adult he would go to jail if caught. Is the threat of jail a deterrent? Should all juveniles be tried as adults? What other deterrents to selling drugs are there?
Two good field trips for this section are a visit to the jail on Whalley Avenue and The Superior Court on Church St. You must call in advance. One writing assignment will be either an interview with a drug dealer or a student’s opinion on drug dealers. For those students who choose to interview a drug dealer you must remind them to be careful not to use any names and not to put themselves into a dangerous situation. Sometimes students’ enthusiasm overcomes their common sense.
Another assignment will he an interview with local residents about their feelings on crime and personal safety. A more formal expository essay will be due entitled “Is capital punishment a solution to crime?” In The Little, Brown anthology there are two excellent readings to prepare for this assignment. They are “In Favor of Capital Punishment,” by Jacques Barzun, and “In Opposition to Death Penalty Legislation,” by Henry Schwarzschild. One guest speaker I intend to ask to come for a visit is Chris Alexy, a prosecutor in New Haven’s Superior Court. Another excellent speaker and an avid supporter of New Haven’s public schools is Tom Morrissey, a New Haven police officer. He is comfortable in the classroom and his ideas are thought provoking. As well as discussing crime it would be helpful to hear his ideas on community based policing.