Short Story: A View On Violence

The Oxford Dictionary defines Violence as any behavior involving physical force, intended to hurt, damage or kill. Simply put, Violence is an act of aggression, which is more rampant in our societies than ever before. Whether we are conscious of it or not, Violence affects all of our lives in every way, shape or form. It takes form in all aspects of life; from individuals clashing over differences in political affiliation to tribal unrest and police brutality. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Violence is the leading cause of death for people aged 15 – 44 years and that 1.6 million people lose their lives to Violence each year. This creates a massive strain on worldwide economies, costing countries billions of dollars each year in health care and lost productivity. Yet 45% of worldwide wealth goes into arms (weapons) production. This leaves one to wonder how can the world be free of Violence when so much is invested in weapon production and not Education.

In the past, Violence was more or less regarded as an act on the part of the uneducated and unemployed. However, in recent times, Violence has become an action of those employed by the Justice System “to serve and to protect.” Hundreds of Police Officers across the World have turned from “Protectors to Predators”, overstepping their boundaries and misusing their power and then getting away with it through the “whitewashed” system. Violence in the case of Police Brutality is not jus a local issue but an international one as well. In Puerto Rico, for NO discernable reason, a Police Officer shot and killed, in execution style, Miguel Caceres Cruz, a 41 year old native, after beating him to the ground. Luckily in this case, self defense could not be claimed as a bystander had captured their entire horror and sent the footage to the media. As a result of the footage, the Police Officer was sentenced to life imprisonment. The most outrageous of all was the Sean Bell shooting in Queens New York on the 25th day of November, 2006. Fifty one shots were fired by a team of NYPD Officers, killing one man to wit: Sean Bell on the night of his Bachelor Party and injuring two others; all three of which were unarmed. On April, 25th, 2008, all the Officers who were indicted with reference to the Sean Bell Shooting were acquitted on all counts. They were charged NOT even for recklessness endangerment. This brought a – lot of unrest, backlash and lack of trust in the Justice System. It was like you could walk up to anyone, kill them and once you are an Officer and there was no viable proof (like footage), then you could get away with it. There were a – lot of songs written by popular artistes to show their hatred for Officers and their disappointment in the Justice System. One in particular struck me. It is “The Games” song “911 is a joke” dedicated to Sean Bell and I quote

“I hate the m_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ n pigs
Cause they hate me
And I should kill 51 cops
For the 51 shots they gave that kid from New York”

At home and abroad, policemen commit crimes and get away with it. This is because when Officers misuse their authority, the incident is quickly “whitewashed”. Police Officers act to protect one another; plant a weapon in reach of the victim and claim self defence. As long as Officers continue to act as “Predators” and not “Protectors”, there will always be hatred towards them by citizens and as we know hatred is a contributor to Violence. We all need to be extremely concerned by the actions of some of our Officers, because each and everyone of us, could be the next “Sean Bell” or the next “Miguel Caceres Cruz”

Moreover, with the current recession, Violence is likely to be at an all time high. Already in the United States of America, there have been many mass killings in recent months. For example, in Binghamton, New York, an unemployed man went on a murderous rampage at an Immigration Office, killing thirteen (13) people and then himself. According to my research, a mass killer is someone who has suffered a catastrophic loss such as loss of a job or loss of a – lot of money. Therefore, there is a visible link between the recession, mass killings and thus Violence. Moreover, according to Patricia Janet Scotland, “Baroness Scotland of Asthal”, the stress caused by financial pressures and job losses is likely to push more people into alcohol and drug abuse, which would result in an automatic rise in Domestic Violence. I am of the view that with a recession, many shelters will be donation starved and thus filled to capacity and as a result forced to turn away those abused women and their children. Where will those abused women and their children go? Probably back into the arms of their abuser or on the Streets.

In conclusion, we all need to realize how much Violence is of personal importance to each and every one of us, as we are all victims of Violence whether directly or indirectly. Through the media, we feel it at home and abroad. I am of the view that Violence prevails because we make many assumptions. That we have the mentality that when there is a problem and we retaliate, our bullet is right and their bullet is evil; that we are morally right and they are morally wrong. In addition, many street gangbangers, terrorist organizations and Police Officers use religious laws and grievances as excuses for Violence. As long as this attitude persists, Violence will forever prevail. As I stated previously, 45% of worldwide wealth is invested into arms production. This is a stunning figure that should give us all cause to wonder hw life on Earth could be different if we weren’t caught up in this madness. There is much to be gained by cultivating our potential to love each other, and forgetting our zeal to gain more material wealth.

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