Protecting children signs of support

The school year for Philadelphia children begins Tuesday. One phrase ought to be written on every classroom blackboard for every child to see: The adults in your life will protect you better this year.

Violence against children keeps rising. City police report that 22 youths under 18 were killed between Jan. 1 and Aug. 24. Three children have died in just the last two weeks. Adults simply must protect children better.

Let's give the city a goal: The death- by-violence rate for children will be cut in half this year. Let us be even more audacious and envision not one child falling victim to a shooter and his bullet. Men United for a Better Philadelphia, Mothers in Charge and Greater Philadelphia Cares, joined with The Inquirer Editorial Board's All Join Hands project, are starting the school year with a community education effort. It takes place in Philadelphia, which has seen so many children killed. But it is a regional effort, for it is about adults acting on their moral and societal responsibility to shepherd children, wherever they are, safely through their most tender years. We will protect you better this year. As bells ring in classes around our region, members of these groups and other volunteers will rise to the task of protecting children. Each day of the week beginning Sept. 13, from dawn until dusk, volunteers will be at SEPTA hubs and in neighborhoods around the city. Men United has done such canvassing before; the members of it and Mothers in Charge are unfortunate experts at working with communities where violence has left its scars.

The week will kick off that Monday at 7 a.m. at the Broad and Olney transit station in North Philadelphia. The rest of the week, Men United will pass out tips to residents on how to keep the frustration all of us sometimes feel from boiling over into violence. The Inquirer will make available a list of resources to help children. Mothers in Charge, whose members include women who have lost a child to violence, will reach out to the public to talk about how grief forever grips the heart of a parent. This face-to-face contact is about educating people in neighborhoods where violence has become prevalent about the risks to children; it's about raising awareness. It's about trying to keep a promise to children. On Tuesday, Sept. 14, Pennsylvania and New Jersey folks are invited to gather in support of our children. From 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., people will ring City Hall, holding signs to encourage reducing violence and protecting children. Between 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., volunteers (you can be one of them) will stand along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Simply put, we need you. Symbolism, you say. You betcha. This city and region could use some powerful symbolism so children unmistakably see that the adults in their world are looking out for them.

You are kidding yourself if you think it's only inner-city kids who need such reassurances. Weapons and abuse are no strangers to children in suburbs. The incidents are fewer and more easily hidden, but they are there. We will be known as a region for success or failure in keeping all of our children safe. Kevin Ryan understands this is a task without borders. He is the state-appointed New Jersey advocate for children, and he'll be holding up a sign in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. Others in both states must ignore differences of geography, race or economic status. Political fights and turf battles should not get in the way of this cause. The divisions that often stymie good efforts in Philadelphia must not prevail this time. This movement cannot stop with one week. Protecting children requires hard action and heartfelt displays of support. The Inquirer Editorial Board will address many issues related to violence reduction this school year. But all of us can begin by chanting this phrase for every child to hear: We will protect you better this year.

5 September 2004
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/9582578.htm

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