The people of Southeast have been powerless to stop death. In the span of three days, as many bodies were found: one in the apartment building on Raleigh St.; one on the sidewalk near the alley on MLK; and on Friday the 16th, the children came out for recess and found a dead man on the playground. I heard one child say, “He had on a Redskin shirt and he was foaming at the mouth.”
People get robbed all the time. I don’t know anyone that has not been robbed that lives off MLK or Alabama Ave. The old people are targets. I’ve seen them rob a man at 4 o’clock in the afternoon, broad daylight. He had gray hair and looked to be around 65. I called the police but when they came they acted like I had done something wrong. Two days later another man got beat up and robbed that was in his 70s. Two o’clock in the afternoon. Each time it is about four to five young men attacking one person.
Then there is the problem of store robbing. Every store gets robbed at least twice a year or the people do a rush and go in and take what they want. There is a community meeting at the United Planning Organization every month with the police about what’s going on.
When I called the police and said I’d seen the guys that robbed in the neighborhood all the time, they said it wasn’t worth it because they would get right out and then they would retaliate and someone might get hurt bad, like death. Is that something for the police to say?
Not everyone in Southeast is into crime. Some just want to feel free to walk to the store or come home from work without a hassle.
Mayor, what are you going to do?
