Julie Blunkosky
July 18, 2007
We cannot fool ourselves into believing that the answer to reducing juvenile violent crime lies in beefed-up law enforcement and more prisons.
The right solution must take a holistic approach to combating a much more systemic problem.
In my work with girls at the Juvenile Detention Center in Orlando, I have found a majority of youth want to change.
They are intelligent; they have realistic goals. What they don't have is an adult guiding and motivating them to reach those goals.
Poverty, unaddressed mental-health needs and an educational system that is ill equipped to deal with "bad behavior" compounds the issue on a larger scale by limiting their access to resources and opportunities that would help them get ahead.
One solution is to start listening to what these youth have to tell us. Many of the female youth I work with agree that juvenile crime is out of control and that kids don't care about the consequences they face. Sadly, they don't care about what happens to themselves because they've given up.
As one girl writes, "I grew up gett'n beat up. So now I make sure wherever I go, I don't get bullied. . . . Many people don't understand why I fight and I don't walk away from it. Many of us are raised wrong and don't get the help that we need."
Another girl writes, "Many of us have the potential to do what we want in life but we need some help."
And here's what they're asking you for: "Instead of wasting money building prisons, try spending more money for programs in our communities that will give us things to do. Expose us to positive role models and people who want to volunteer to help us. Listen to us when we're asking for help and don't be so quick to give up."
And we must not stop there.
Segregating troubled youth to alternative schools is a recipe for disaster. How can we expect youth to behave appropriately and learn healthy coping skills in an environment where there are few positive behaviors to model?
We must allow troubled youth to socialize with youth who are positive peer role models. This will inevitably require a tolerant, pro-active approach by public schools to intervene when youth show signs of acting out.
In addition, an overwhelming number of youth in the juvenile-justice system have unaddressed mental-health needs. The system is not equipped to be both punitive and therapeutic at the same time.
With proper treatment and early intervention, these youth face a greater likelihood of success both socially and academically.
The true solution to the juvenile justice "train wreck" is neither quick nor easy and will require attention by all members of our community, not solely the Department of Juvenile Justice and law enforcement. It will be costly in time, effort and money and will require a twist in perspective and an openness to understanding the roots of delinquent behavior.
Julie Blunkosky is the program facilitator for the Girls Advocacy Project Inc. in Orlando.
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