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Published
December 14, 2005
More time with kids may curb
violence
A time for family, fun and faith.
That's what the holidays are all
about. But how much enjoyment can
there be for the dozens of families
affected by the recent outburst of
violence in some of our major cities?
How will these people, whose
families have been shattered, get
through the holiday season?
Sadly, the violence is mostly
happening among our youth, which tells
me that we parents — mothers
and fathers alike — are not
doing our jobs. It's up to us to teach
our children the difference between
right and wrong, good and evil,
violence and confrontation, and
between expressing frustration and
anger versus destroying your own life
and that of others.
How has it come this far that
children are carrying guns into their
schools and on to the streets where
they grew up? From one side of the
country to the other, the number of
shootings has greatly increased this
past year.
Is it true that we, as parents, are
breeding a generation of youth who
believe violence is an acceptable part
of everyday life? Is it due to
television, movies, rap music and the
celebrity of Gangsta life?
I don't think so.
I don't think we can blame it on
anyone or anything, like Hollywood or
the media. No, there have always been
TV shows and movies with violence. The
first part of The Godfather movie
trilogy was made in 1972, nearly three
generations ago.
As suggested to me by James Miller,
the director of End Youth Violence
based in Vancouver, "when we sit
down to dinner we need to utilize that
time to open the lines of
communication with our children."
He believes that we need to better
teach our children effective means of
conflict resolution.
And I agree.
End Youth Violence (www.youthandviolence.com)
was founded in 1998 by Miller, an
experienced youth services worker and
former chairperson of the 51 Division
Community & Police Liaison
Committee. Miller had worked in areas
including Inner City parts of Los
Angeles, Vancouver, Surrey, B.C., and
Toronto, and he saw first-hand that
there weren't enough violence
prevention programs, or free services
for kids and teens in trouble.
What's happening in our country
right now plays like something
straight out of South Central L.A. or
the streets of Harlem, N.Y. Just
recently in Toronto, a young man was
gunned down in front of a church while
he attended the funeral of one of his
friends, also cut down in the prime of
life.
As the holidays approach us, and
the new year awaits, what can we do to
help our children? We need to step up
our actions and stop this wave of
violent behaviour. Because if we
don't, we're going to lose more of our
precious offspring.
How about making a New Year's
resolution for yourself? Spend more
time with your children and help them
see the beauty in our world. Help them
rise above the violence they may be
becoming accustomed to, and help them
become responsible adults.
Tune into CFRB Talk Radio 1010 on
Sunday from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. to hear
Lisi Tesher on Ask Ellie And Lisi.
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