Albany Violence


By DIA, Section News
Posted on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 06:54:42 AM EST

Two stabbings this weekend, one fatal.
ALBANY -- City police said a festering dispute that started last week ended with the fatal stabbing of a teenager outside his home early Saturday. A 21-year-old man is charged with the slaying.

Francisco "Bonz" Delacruz, 17, became this year's eighth homicide victim in the city. Police said he was stabbed once in the chest after a brief altercation outside his 551 Washington Ave. home sometime after 12:30 a.m.
This area of Washington Avenue appears to be joining some of the other areas of the city in their slow decline. Seeing as this is right next to SUNYA dorms and the Albany High School, this is a big problem, in my opinion. If I recall correctly the business they mention in the article (Weigel Beverage) closed in the past year as has the pizza joint across the street, which is currently for sale. They of course sit across the street from a boarded up building right on the corner.

The other stabbing was reportedly at 651 Watervliet off of Central.

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Albany Violence | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 hidden)
Changing dynamics (none / 0) (#1)
by AlfredMoisiu on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 12:07:25 PM EST
The construction of the new dorms at SUNY a few years ago siphoned off a couple thousand upperclassmen from the student areas in Albany. Without a city that enforces code and students to rent "student ghetto" apartments to, the scumbag landlords are forced to bring in real ghetto folks.

Ten years ago, Central Ave was the boundary of the seedier part of town. Now its somwhere between Washington and Western. A few years ago, driving around streets like Ontario, Quail, Hamilton and Hudson in late July was a different place -- the yearlong residents could finally enjoy their neighborhood. Today, it's fully populated with the poorest, trashiest people -- kinda like Clinton Ave without the burnt out shells. There's more graffitti, more garbage on the street, more dilapitated home.

I took my neices and nephews to Bros. Tacos a few weeks ago, and got to see a "show" across the street -- some woman who looked like an Appalachia trasplant put her "boyfriends' babymammas' kid" through a front window, then threw a bottle of beer at the responding cops.

Kinda rattled me. Hopefully my neighborhood avoids this fate.

We're all in it together (none / 0) (#2)
by Tom Paine on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 01:54:11 PM EST
With your attitude I am sure things will be just fine. Jeez.

We've got to geth past this "us/them" thinking and all work together in this city.

I agree with the importance of cooperation... (none / 0) (#3)
by firefoxfan on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 07:32:16 PM EST
But we need to be able to call a spade a spade: there are some people--both poor and rich--whose actions do not make them worthy of the name "citizen." The Left places the burden on the rich, and the Right places the burden on the poor.  The truth is that wealthier individuals can do greater harm to their neighbors, but that does not mean we ignore the atrocious behavior when we see it of the lower strata.  Poverty is an explanation, not an excuse.

We need leadership in Albany that will stop favoring the well-to-do and big donors while at the same time refusing to accept the low brow behaviors of significant numbers of the population.

This corrupt culture is not limited to one part of the population or another. It crosses racial, ethnic, and class lines and is spreading. The lower class wants unjustified entitlements, and the upper class believes itself to be entitled to a free ride of its own.

The solutions? Many of them are probably at the State and Federal levels of government, but Albany can be proactive.  The next Mayor--when Tan-man is ousted or retires--needs to set up a committee whose responsibility it is to explore urban renewal and economic revitalization in other urban settings.  This includes but is not limited to: innovative ways of dealing with crime, the encouragement of small/local businesses, infrastructure repair, and the improvement of the public school system. Albany is not the only city in the Northeast with these problems, so we need to see what other people are doing.

One other possibility to consider would be the devolution of funds to the neighborhoods themselves to deal with problems local to them. We can see what works and go from there.  This is all experimental, but so what? The current status quo isn't working out so well...

Finally, and perhaps most importantly in the long run, will be the strengthening of the Common Council that can act as a check against the Mayor/Executive.  There needs to be balance of some kind between the two.

[ Parent ]

I agree and disagree (none / 0) (#5)
by AlfredMoisiu on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 08:40:36 PM EST
I think the idea of giving funds to nebulous groups like "neighborhoods" -- sounds like a recipie for decentralized corruption to me.

I think that the keys to address many of Albany's woes have been discussed here often.... Discourage speculation by enforcing realistic tax valuations on vacant property. Strict and unyielding code enforcement. Televise public meetings. Simple, cheap things to implement.

Once you start cracking down on the easy money in this town (cheap real estate and criminal activity that stems from it), the parasites (dirty officals, etc) become easier to spot.

Strengthening the council isn't going to fix anything. Other than rehearsing for a real job, councilmen serve little purpose -- this isn't 1950, and nobody knows or cares about aldermen.


[ Parent ]

So what you are saying is... (none / 0) (#6)
by firefoxfan on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 10:39:45 PM EST
To keep a strong mayoral system?  As strong as it is now? Or should there be a check on the mayor's power? If so, to what extent?

These are the questions we need to be considering; they are more important than who the next mayor is, because without a change, we will end up with the same thing Albany has always gotten--corruption and inefficiency.

We need to push any future candidates for mayor or common council on this issue--we need citizens to run who are genuinely concerned with charter reform and with an agenda to do so.  We need to look past crime, economic revitalization, education, and any other issue that is secondary to the heart of the matter: the reformation of Albany's government to make it difficult if not impossible for the mayor to be, in effect, a dictator.  We can not depend on the virtue of the system being based upon the virtue of one person.

[ Parent ]

Tom Paine is correct. (none / 0) (#10)
by A Muse on Mon Sep 08, 2008 at 02:07:30 PM EST
There must be no us/them thinking or actions.  The actions of the city leaders must be like the actions taken by the leaders (parents) of a family.  Each action may not necessarily benefit every member of the family but in the end every member is the beneficiary of the common actions of the leadership.  Families include those who commit crimes against others and themselves, use drugs and alcohol, have mental and physical disabilities, get fired or laid off from a job, are the first to graduate high school or college, become a teacher/professor, doctor, Olympian, or even a lawyer.  Well maybe not the lawyer.  There must be avenues to work with all family members and members of the community are your family like it or not.

[ Parent ]
None so Blind as those who will not see..... (none / 0) (#4)
by FrankieB on Sun Aug 31, 2008 at 07:43:16 PM EST
While I consider any life lost to street violence to be a waste and unacceptable, let's be real about this case. The news reports were focusing on how the "victim" in this stabbing was "according to his girlfriend and friends, a realy good kid, not a trouble-maker." Yeah...right.

The photograph shown of him on the news shows a kid clearly flashing gang signs, the make-shift "memorial" to him focuses around a red shirt and hat (recognized gang colors). Let's be clear, this was no innocent nine year old girl caught in cross-fire while playing out in front of her home.

If you want to "live the life" you frequently end up "paying the price".

The responsible thing to do is for the authorities to remove the "make-shift memorial" to this kid.

You want to donate flowers? Bring them to the funeral or the cemetary.
You want to really "honor" the good part of your friend/relative? Make a donation to a literacy program, after-school program, or a gang intervention program.

Don't have money?
Commit yourself to turning away from street life, focusing on school, and becoming a real role model for your community.

In short, honor not the colors of his gang, but develop the content of your character.

Any good research on this? (none / 0) (#7)
by Tom Paine on Thu Sep 04, 2008 at 10:19:53 AM EST
Can anyoneo point to any links on good research showing what actually works to curb violence? Because we aren't doing a very good job here all by ourselves....

Tom, Research Swedish society... (none / 0) (#8)
by Jim Travers on Thu Sep 04, 2008 at 03:46:36 PM EST
and you will find some of the answers you're seeking.

[ Parent ]
The Future is now (none / 0) (#9)
by A Muse on Mon Sep 08, 2008 at 01:51:59 PM EST
The future is in automated devices.  Albany's traffic system is an antique and must be retired.  The cost will be high but the benefits will also be high.  At the time of instillation video cameras need to be installed on every major intersection and installed first in high crime areas.  Crime will move to lower crime areas. The cameras are not intended to prevent crime but they can record it and assist police in taking criminals off the street.  A lock only keeps marginally honest people out.
Albany Violence | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 hidden)
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