With Good Reason

Another violent episode at C.W. Jeffreys Collegiate in north Toronto yesterday. A young student was stabbed. Thankfully, as reported on last night’s Global news, he is going to be okay — but was not cooperating with police — meaning he is scared that whoever did this to him will try again.

Yet, the only thing we ever see or hear from school and Toronto District School Board (TDSB) officials is don’t worry, we have everything under control. Well, they clearly don’t and denial that there is a gang problem is only endangering more students and teachers.

Why doesn’t the TDSB and the parents involved, admit there is a gang problem? Because such an admission would mean that some in our society would have to take responsibility for the behaviour of their children — a politically incorrect topic if there ever was one. Yet, it doesn’t need to be. If it is a social problem, we need to deal with it. If it is a cultural problem, then those communities need to deal with it.

Because clearly, poverty and disadvantage have nothing to do with violence and violent behaviour. Many people have experienced poverty and disadvantage. Yet, their kids are clean and they respect their elders. And, most of those parents didn’t make excuses for their children’s behaviour. In the past, for example, if we got in trouble at school, we got in trouble at home. That was just the way it was.

In fact, in the past, most first generation Canadians were poor. Yet, their poverty did not affect the self-esteem of their children. They knew they were loved and their parents told them they could be anything they wanted to be with hard work and a good education — which is what has happened with most second and third generation children — no matter what their cultural or racial background.

So, surely, we can correct a social problem such as gangs and gang violence without it being considered racist and politically incorrect to name it and talk about it. Surely, parents will not blame the “school system” for being the problem for everything that is wrong in their and their children’s lives. Because if they do and we can’t talk about it without being labelled a racist, then politically correctness is just as responsible for the death and injury of students than the person or persons carrying out the violent acts.

I have written about this topic before (see also this link on the TDSB school safety report). Ever since young Jordan Manners was shot in the corridors of C.W. Jeffreys, TDSB trustees and staff have played down the violence.

And, what is particularly puzzling is the fact that the TDSB had appointed a very effective principal at Jeffreys by the name of Jim Spyropoulos (read about him here and here), who was apparently turning the school around. Yet, now we find out there is another principal (Audley Salmon).

Why can’t the TDSB not provide consistency and stability? Why do they keep changing principals, particularly when one is getting results? What is going on? Is the decision to appoint yet another principle, reverse racism, because Spryopoulos was not black. I certainly hope not.

The crux of the matter is that the TDSB has some explaining to do. For starters, they have to stop blaming political correctness for all the violence problems. If only we had more ways of increasing self-esteen ….. can only go so far. They have a gang problem and it’s long past time that we started to talk about it out in the open.

Here is a google link with all the articles you would ever need to prove the point that Toronto and the GTA has a school violence problem and here is an excellent source for examples of school violence throughout the GTA in 2008.

Update: It looks like former C.W. Jeffreys Collegiate principal, Jim Spyropoulos, has been promoted to Area Superintendent. I’m glad for him but it doesn’t change the fact that adminstrative continuity would be helpful for the school. Also of note, is the fact that Spyropoulos is responsible for the SW1 Region — which covers the west end of Toronto, Lakeshore and Etobicoke — not the area where Jeffreys is located.

C/P at Crux-of-the-Matter.