[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 94 (Friday, June 9, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1215-E1216]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


 A REALISTIC LOOK AT CRIME FIGHTING FROM THE NEW BEDFORD STANDARD TIMES

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                           HON. BARNEY FRANK

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 8, 1995
  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, the city of New Bedford is 
an ethnically diverse, older industrial city, which is also one of the 
major fishing ports in the country. Thus, it has had its share of 
experience with all of the problems that affect modern America. And 
this has given the New Bedford Standard Times, the newspaper of New 
Bedford, a very good perspective on versions of these problems, 
including that of urban crime. It is for this reason that the very 
thoughtful and cogent editorial which ran in the Standard Times on May 
25 seems to me worth sharing here. Too often today, in American 
journalism, bad news is all that gets attention. And the antidote to 
this is not factitious and unfounded optimism, but a willingness to 
look at encouraging trends in a thoughtful way, and to see what we can 
do to promote these trends.
  The editorial in the Standards Times which I ask to be printed here 
does exactly that. The Standard Times quotes New Bedford Police Chief 
Richard Benoit in strong support of community policing. It points out 
that ``grassroots policing and community building activities that 
prevent crime from occurring in the first place, are an essential part 
of an overall anticrime strategy.
  No one can accuse the Standard Times of being soft on crime, or 
unaware of the need for strong law enforcement measures. The balance 
and thoughtful appraisal it gives of recent crime fighting efforts is 
all the more valuable for that reason. I ask that the editorial be 
printed here.
          [From the New Bedford Standard Times, May 25, 1995]

      Sunnier Crime Statistics Point the Direction for the Future

       Life in the community got a lot better in New Bedford in 
     1994, judging by the crime statistics just released for the 
     state. This city was one of a handful to experience a sharp 
     drop in serious crime--a full 27 percent. Other towns and 
     cities did even better; [[Page E1216]] crime in Plymouth 
     dropped an amazing 67.6 percent, Weymouth 40.2 percent.
       And in case anyone suspects that all towns and cities had 
     the same results, look at Fall River, where the decline was 
     modest, at 4.4 percent, and at Lowell, where crime rose 44.5 
     percent.
       What is going on here? Is this news for New Bedford as good 
     as it seems?
       Perhaps it is. While it is not safe to make sweeping 
     conclusions based on one year's statistics, something 
     obviously went right in New Bedford last year. It goes 
     against the reputation of this city to learn that there were 
     just three murders here last year; that's fewer than some 
     small towns experience. And it is far cry from such places as 
     gang-infested Gary, Indiana, the per capita murder capital of 
     the country, which can barely keep count.
       New Bedford Police Chief Richard Benoit's view is that 
     community policing--more uniformed officers working in 
     concert with neighborhood associations--are making a dramatic 
     difference. ``You can put as many undercover officers out 
     there but you wouldn't be having the same effect on someone 
     who sees a uniformed officer,'' he told our reporter.
       That strikes us as common sense, and it ought to be 
     remembered by those in the state Legislature and in Congress 
     who believe that the most effective way to fight crime is to 
     endlessly build new prisons while starving the grassroots 
     policing and community-building activities that prevent crime 
     from occurring in the first place.
       It used to be that liberals were routinely mocked for being 
     for all the ``soft'' community programs intended to build 
     character and keep young lives from going the wrong way. Now, 
     the majority in Congress has set its sights on much the same 
     objective, couching it in terms of such things as traditional 
     ``family values'' and the old social structures in which 
     people watched out for each other.
       It would pay these lawmakers to keep an eye on New Bedford 
     and other places, where such things are being tried with 
     apparent success. It is not that this community has suddenly 
     become an oasis of calm in a crime-ridden America. Heaven 
     knows we still have our problems with drugs and violence. It 
     just pays to remember that it could be far worse, it has been 
     far worse, and our own experience can be our guide.
     

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