Community Spirit in Preventing
Community Safety Issues
I am Involved
My Kids play with your kids
Your Family Comes to my house
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Broken Windows Theory– a theory that a
neighborhood in
disrepair signals that criminal activity is
tolerated in the area.
Thus, by cracking down on quality-of-life crimes,
police can reclaim the neighborhood and
encourage law-abiding citizens to live and
work there
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Broken Window or Shattered Dreams
• Strong communities lessen the isolation of
individuals, assist in developing respect for the
property of others, enhance community spirit
and provide citizens with a sense of belonging.
Crime prevention strategies are most
effective when community members come
together around these causes and coordinate
their efforts at all levels to solve the issues in
their community.
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Broken Windows Policing
1. The Broken Windows
Theory
Based on order
maintenance.
“Cracks down” of quality-
of-life crimes.
2. Crackdowns
Aggressive patrol in “hot
spots.”
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• Parents typically express fear for their
children’s safety
• Most people recognize that their chances of
property crime victimization are greater than
their chances of personal crime victimization
• Many people report that they limit their
activities due to fear of crime
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Policing to Reduce Fear: Prevailing
Theories
• Reducing Crime Reduces Fear
• Professional Policing Reduces Fear
• Reducing Disorder Reduces Fear (Broken
Windows)
• COP Reduces Fear
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SARA
• Scanning – to identify pockets of fear and/or
new fear issues
• Analysis – to determine who is most fearful,
why, when, where, etc.
• Response – after considering a range of
responses, implementing one or more that are
tailored to the specific problem
• Assessment – determining whether fear was
reduced, if not why not, etc.
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Crime Triangle
• Locations – places where fear is greatest, or
most out of proportion to risk
• Offenders – people and behaviors most
responsible for fear
• Victims – people most affected by fear of
crime
• Guardians – people who have a stake in
reducing fear and/or have some responsibility
for offenders/locations
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• There are many ways to create engagement
and spirit in your neighbourhood. You can get
involved in creating neighbourhood parks or
gardens for everyone to enjoy. You can start a
weekly ball hockey game with children and
parents on your street. You can also organize a
special event and make it a tradition every
year. You might be surprised just how many
people jump on board when a good idea is
offered.
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We US and You!
• Don’t forget to cast a wide net when approaching
other neighbours to participate. Mothers and fathers,
seniors and young people, newcomers, friends,
colleagues - everyone has something to contribute.
One of the issues that can divide communities the
most is fear – of people with different cultures and
religions, people with different languages, people with
disabilities, the young and the old, and people who
might just look or act a bit different. It is only through
getting to know people that you can rid a
neighbourhood of these fears and build stronger
communities.
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Shake my hand we all live here
• Being a good neighbour starts with the very
simple step of getting to know people in your
neighbourhood. How can we do this? Invite
people over for a barbeque. Go next door with
your shovel or snow-blower after a big snowfall.
Offer your expertise on a project you know
someone is starting. Check in on the elderly
couple living across the street. Small acts of
kindness can lead to big rewards as you make
friends in your neighbourhood and will open the
door for the same acts of kindness from your
neighbours.
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Being as welcoming
• Strong, inclusive and collaborative
partnerships are key to building better
neighbourhoods. Being as welcoming as you
can of different people, their skills and
opinions, will help open the doors for
everyone to contribute and to learn new
things. Bringing together people from all ages
and stages and walks of life helps break down
barriers and bridge the gaps between all of us.
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Let talk may we have a solution
• The old saying “there’s strength in numbers” is true.
The more connected we are to people and groups in
our communities, the more we benefit from each
other’s skills and knowledge, and perhaps most
importantly, the more likely we are to help each other
in times of need.
• And, after all your hard work is done, remember to
celebrate your successes! Take photos, write stories
and send these to local papers and other media and to
politicians and organizations in your community to let
them know about the good work you are doing.
Hearing about someone else’s success can often lead
others to take action too.
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It is true
• Proverb: It Takes a Whole Village to Raise a
Child
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The community discusses
• Auto safety campaigns
• Home and apartment safety
• Park watches/patrols
• Anti-bullying programming
• Traffic safety initiatives
• Graffiti removal/cleanup events
• Community beautification projects
• Community spirit events
• Crime councils/safety groups
• Youth programming
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Communities vs Gangs
• Street gang prevention/intervention cannot be assigned as
the sole responsibility of any one service agency.
• Gangs are not just a police problem, a school problem, or a
family problem.
• Cooperation between parents, police, the community, and
government officials are proving to be the most effective.
• Collaborative prevention/intervention efforts are likely to
be more effective if they are initiated when the signs of
gang activity first appear.
• Remember that prevention is the key to controlling gang
activity
• Everyone and every community can work on solutions to
gang activity
• Effective anti-gang efforts begin with partnerships among
parents, schools, law enforcement, religious institutions,
community organizations, businesses, and youth.
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How You Can Prevent Gang Violence
• Children and teens who have good skills to deal with other people are less likely to join gangs
or to be involved in negative behaviour. To build self-confidence and respect for others in
their children, parents need to teach:
• Honest communication. Children need to learn to express feelings such as anger, joy, love and
fear. They must believe it is okay for them to express these feelings without being teased or
punished.
• Cooperation. Children must learn to cooperate, negotiate, and put themselves in another
person’s shoes. Praise your children for cooperating, especially when they are able to work
out a compromise.
• Personal responsibility. Teach your children to be responsible for their actions. Let them
know that even if they do not get something right at first, what counts is that they are trying
hard and learning from the experience.
• Ability to make decisions. Instead of solving problems for your children, give them the chance
to think of possible solutions.
• Ability to give and receive unconditional love. Love your children for who they are, regardless
of how well they do in school, sports, or other activities. Even if you are angry with them, let
them know you still love and respect them.
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Understand the Danger of Gangs
• Learn about gang activity in your area. Talk to your children about
the negative things that gangs do, and how they can affect your
child, their friends, your neighbourhood, and your family.
• Do not allow your children to dress in gang-style clothing. Explain to
your children that these items of clothing can put them in danger
and that you will not purchase them or allow them to be worn.
• Point out violent messages on television and in movies. Talk to your
children about ways they can solve their problems without fighting
or violence, and demonstrate the strategies in your own life.
• Get to know your child’s friends and their parents. When children
start to feel pressure to use drugs or join gangs, it usually comes
from their friends.
• Start educating your children at an early age. While five-year-olds
may not understand about the effects of joining a gang, they can
learn to say “no” to negative behaviour.
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We are stronger together not separate
• Community awareness, crime prevention and community safety initiatives
cannot be packaged as one-time solutions that can be applied in every
community for every problem. Instead, crime prevention should be
viewed as a process of community building that can address a range of
issues that confront and challenge your community. From the corporate
sector right down to the local neighbourhood, community leaders have
the ability to empower their communities to play an active role in crime
reductions.
• By becoming active participants in identifying the types of crime in their
neighbourhood, key stakeholders can develop long range strategies to
reduce crimes in their neighbourhoods.
• Strong community awareness lessens the isolation of individuals, helps
develop respect for the property of others, enhances community spirit
and provides citizens with a sense of belonging. Crime prevention
strategies are most effective when community members come together
around a common cause and coordinate their efforts at all levels to solve
the issues in their community.
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increase the risk of criminal behaviour
• child poverty
• inadequate living conditions
• inconsistent and uncaring parenting
• childhood traumas (such as physical and sexual abuse)
• family breakdown
• racism and other forms of discrimination
• difficulties in school
• friends engaging in criminal behaviour
• living situations involving alcohol, drugs and other
kinds of substance abuse.
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Arrest Rates and Efficiency
• The police will come
they will help but
community protection
and involvement comes
from everyone in the
community
• THE POLICE ARE THE
PEOPLE AND THE
PEOPLE ARE THE POLICE
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Problem-solving Policing
• Police react to too many calls for service, without
acting to reduce or prevent the underlying problems.
1. Hot Spots
Areas of high criminal activity.
2. Crime Mapping
Generally, involves computerized
programs used to identify areas
with specific crime problems.
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Elements of Ethic in your community
• Discretion—how the neighbors must or must
not act.
• Duty—obligation to act.
• Honesty—a critical attribute for the hundreds
of decisions a person must make during a day.
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Speak up
• If you notice suspected illegal activity going on
in your community step up don't be a coward,
take your community back. speak up/out
don't turn a deaf-ear it will only make matters
worst. Become a crime stopper step up to the
plate so to speak.
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Not in my hood!
• Take action for protection of your children and
family, concerned about drug sales? Caller can
remain anonymous and there may be a cash
reward offered for the information leading to
arrests. So speak up so that officer can began
investigation that will lead to arrested and
charged
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