Olivia Chow and Banning Handguns

Mayoral candidate Olivia Chow reiterated her support for a federal ban on handguns on Monday.  Rival John Tory called the proposal an "empty gesture."

I'm hesitant to weigh in on stories like this, lest my position be viewed as or skewed as an endorsement (I've not committed to any mayoral candidate, yet), but feel compelled to say something in this instance.

I happen to sit on the Lawrence Heights Inter-Organizational Network (LHION) Safety Sub-Committee as a friend of the community.  My family used to live nearby and my wife used to teach at a school there.  We've been to countless birthday parties, community barbeques and school events in Lawrence Heights.  It's the closest place I have in Toronto to a community of my own.

There are a ton of talented, dedicated and entrepreneurial people in Lawrence Heights.  These people don't get much attention, nor do their projects.  What does get attention, always, are crimes, particularly gun crimes and homicides.

Whether I have right to or not, I feel very protective of my friends in Lawrence Heights.  I hate to see them judged on negatives alone, while the value and community generated every day by its residents gets neglected.  By the same token, when anyone sticks their neck out on behalf of that community, I hate to see them targeted by cheap politics, too.

Abshir Hassan happened to be shot when Rob Ford was returning to Toronto's political scene.  As always, he sucked up all oxygen, driving all attention - including that of other mayoral candidates - to his antics.  This bothered me, as it seemed like poking at Ford was taking precedence to the human tragedy and repercussions facing Lawrence Heights. 

So, I issued a tweet challenging mayoral candidates to show as much concern for this community as they did for Rob Ford.

Team Chow answered.  They were the only ones that did.  Through Jennifer Hollett and now, through the amazingly dedicated and empathetic Bori Csillag, Team Chow has remained committed to the community, seeking details of the funeral and vigil as well as asking how people were doing at today's Safety Sub-Committee meeting.

Perhaps John Tory thinks this is an empty gesture, too, but at least Team Chow made it.  Sitting back and waiting for others to come to you isn't leadership.  Griping after the fact is even worse.

This is not to say Tory's heart is in the wrong place - I sincerely think he does want to help - but he has yet to demonstrate any facility for understanding the structural problems and offering realistic structural solutions, either.

Which brings us back to Chow.

I think that her position of banning handguns is consistent with the position she has always taken on this issue, but I also think it's the wrong place to dedicate energy or attention.

At today's Safety Sub-Committee meeting, banning handguns wasn't raised once; not by residents, not by city staff and not by police.  This is for good reason - it's not a structural solution.  Banning handguns won't eliminate access to handguns; even if you could wave a wand and vanish handguns from the earth, those using them now would pick up a knife and the violence would just get messier.

Besides, owning a handgun doesn't automatically mean you're going to use it on a person; there are people on Chow's team who own handguns and have never used it on a person, ever.

Where solutions were discussed by all concerned, the talk was of providing positive alternatives to crime - mentorship for youth, parenting advice for their folks, sustainable, opportunity-creating jobs and entrepreneurship.  The question wasn't "how can we stop a negative from happening" and instead was "how can we encourage positives to happen?"

There's something all politicians can learn from this wisdom - if they take the time to listen to people from communities like Lawrence Heights.

I wrote a long email to one of the officers present which raises many points I've raised elsewhere on this blog - that the solution has to be community-led, but that there are countless partners willing to help out.  Heck, the actual programs and ideas necessary already exist - someone just needs to properly fund, organize and coordinate them. 

The problem is that nobody has that as their job description.  Turf wars, a lack of transition strategies, poor management and insufficient training, among other things, lead to a perpetuation of the cycle that could and should be broken.  Private sector partners that want to fund one-off projects, whatever their noble intentions, aren't helping to take the lead out of the pipe, either.

 

It's these structural issues that absolutely most be addressed if we're to solve violent crime, poverty and youth employment in this City.

 

While banning handguns isn't the answer, at least Team Chow has made an effort.  It's a good start, something everyone can build on.

 

Instead of casting stones, I would encourage each and every mayoral candidate to also make the effort to engage, to listen and to learn that Team Chow has set in the wake of this shooting.

 

After all, when we throw those stones, it's folk like Abshir Hassan  whose lives get cut short by the falling shards.

I've no interest in cutting anyone, nor standing by while others get cut. 

We've bled enough already.