Continuing the search for solutions to tragic, senseless violence
Statement of Common Council President Michael J. Murphy April 16, 2015
It’s been a sad, discouraging week in Milwaukee. My heart goes out to all the families affected by this most recent uptick in incomprehensible violence. Any loss of life is tragic, whether due to violence or accident, but this series of events as it has unfolded in our neighborhoods seemingly defies explanation.
While the sort of senseless acts of violence we’ve seen this week are certainly frightening, we must not simply brush off such atrocities as “common-place.” City leaders and members of the community strive every day to make our community a safer place to live, and the moment we begin to accept these tragedies as inevitable is the moment we’ve lost.
I strongly support Mayor Barrett’s $2,000,000 commitment to continue Milwaukee Police Department efforts to quell the current violence while seeking longer-term solutions that will undercut its root causes. Law enforcement has a very important role to play, even as we institute more comprehensive preventative programs, in particular those targeting youth violence.
As we’ve seen time and time again, many of the perpetrators of the city’s most heinous crimes have a history of criminal activity. By focusing on intervening immediately and effectively when delinquent behavior first occurs, we can prevent delinquent offenders from becoming chronic offenders, committing crimes of escalating seriousness and violence.
Even as this violence leads the evening news, it cannot define who we are as a city. Last night, I attended the MANDI awards with more than 800 people who are working every day to make this city a better place to live. Their efforts are truly inspiring, and I remain committed to working with them, my colleagues on the Common Council and anyone who believes that, with dedicated neighbors and comprehensive solutions, we can overcome the problems Milwaukee faces.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
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I’ve put off submitting my application for my CCW permit. Listening to the advice of a police officer in Milwaukee, I’m filling mine out today.
What did the officer tell you? To paraphrase David Clarke, don’t call 911 just start shooting?
He recognized that the criminal isn’t going to provide me time to call 911. Even if I was able to, the police would be of no help to me in that moment. If my life is in danger and I have no gun, I’m helpless….dead. If I have one, I have a fighting chance to survive.
Do you reside in a neighborhood plagued by a lot of gun violence? I hope you receive training in how to properly, safely use a firearm if you get a CCW permit.
Alderman Murphy, Creative Alliance Milwaukee stands ready to be an active part of the solution. Creatives are some of the best types of people to tap to solve our deepest problems, because creatives are trained to think differently. The only way we’re going to come to real solutions is by thinking differently. “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
Albert Einstein.
JD – unless you have a gun immediately available (meaning in your hand, and loaded) at the time a Criminal is robbing you, shooting at you, etc…that gun of yours will not do you any good. Criminals do not have a habit of seeing who has their gun out first. And you will never know when said criminal will choose you as their next victim – so how could a gun possibly save you against these issues?
As evidenced by the amount of rounds shot versus their effectiveness to their intended targets in the last few weeks of shootings, I’m confident that the training I’ve received is sufficient for the loaded gun in my pocket to be an effective tool. I do not reside in an area plagued by violence, but I travel through and near the areas where these things occur more often. I don’t consider 60th and Capitol to be an unsafe area to visit. I was recently at the Starbucks on 54th. I felt safe, but just the other day a 15 year old committed an armed robbery and stole a car in that area. I don’t want that to be me. If the person he stole the car from was armed and shot him, he wouldn’t have been able to drive away and hurt other innocent people in the vehicle crash.
Mike, your a hypocrit ! The money is there to fund a trolly but not for putting more police on the street or for to stop furrowing cops. Like Barrett, All I hear is blah, blah, blah. Shame on you and Barrett for giving up on Milwaukee