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Voices of Reason and Hope
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20271 |
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Section : |
CURRENT ISSUES
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7 / 1992 |
1,993 Words |
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Major Garrett is a national reporter for the Washington
Times. |
Preventive Medicine
Philadelphia did not have the riots because of the community-police action created five years ago [under the Goode administration]. We have worked hard to build up the community with people of all races.
What happened in LA came from a lack of hope stemming from 12 year of Reagan cuts. There is no doubt that an investment in the cities, which is were the majority of blacks live, could put an end to this type of frustration.
--Wilson Goode, former mayor of Philadelphia
Empowerment and Responsibility
Needed is an urban policy that gives inner-city Americans a real stake in their own neighborhoods and their families' future. This means giving these Americans effective control over their own lives. When people feel that others have the power to determine their economic and social future, the result is frustration, resentment, and often social tension. But having a real stake also means a person must take responsibility for his own life. Empowerment implies a corresponding responsibility. And empowerment is impossible without peace and order in city streets.
Thus Bush should demand swift congressional action on measures now languishing on Capitol Hill that would give inner-city Americans real power to determine their own future. Among these are the following:
·America 2000, which would begin to give parents the chance to determine which school their child attends--public or private--and thereby wrest control away from administrative bureaucracies and teacher unions;
·Enterprise zones, which would reduce tax and regulatory obstacles to Americans taking the risk of starting a business in blighted neighborhoods;
·Public housing "perestroika," which would allow tenants in run-down, troubled housing projects to take over the management of these projects from often corrupt local public housing authorities. This builds on the success of tenant-managed projects across the country.
Each of
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