Why Is Violence Acceptable?

Introduction

The purpose of this project is to identify the origin of violence and to explore its impact upon the individual, a community and society. Human beings learn about violence in many ways and then share various techniques with our peers within the social network. In effect, as adults in both family settings and academic classrooms, individuals may (unknowingly) contribute to the vicious cycle of violence that brings us discomfort and pain.

The author shall offer a Personal Glimpse of a troubled teenager's experience and the consequences for members of his social network. Violent reaction was always the first or second option in this young man's life. Under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, it was the sole option. The logical thinking of an intelligent person was supplanted with the intoxication of the mind and resulted in mayhem and destruction.

A Review of the Literature is necessary to examine relevant statistics and scholarly journals to offer insight on the subject of violence. We must be able to understand violence as a threat to the survival of mankind. As a community of self, we are destroying each other at an alarming rate. Violence is a problem that concerns the international community and much research have been compiled. Is it considered an epidemic? Such questions and others shall be addressed in this section to check the pulse of fellow citizens.

A major issue is to determine whether society is best served by punishing deviant behavior or by seeking to change the recklessness of the offender.

After a paralyzing examination of relevant material, it is quite necessary to provide a few recommendations. Therefore, Suggestions for a Brighter Day is meant to offer hope to parents, educators and peer counselors in the area of violence prevention. The primary tool utilized in the effort to rid our society of violence must be education and providing access to valuable information is crucial.

Personal Glimpse

I am the third oldest of eight children. I was born on December, 12, 1952. My family lived in the Baltimore, Maryland area until my father was transferred to Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire. At the age of five I began my public school experience in the seacoast area of Portsmouth and subsequently encountered a barrage of racial slurs.

Although I remember observing and being subjected to parental discipline myself for bad behavior during my early years, the initial fights and other acts of violence began with the children in the community. My brother, a sister and I attended the same school and there were regular rights on the bus. The conflict was not always racial, although I believe that racism was a factor in my neighborhood. This community in New Hampshire consisted of approximately 125 families in a housing development. Black children were represented in only 4-5 families during the early years. We lived in this community from 1957 to 1970.

I learned to fight at an early age against neighborhood kids to resolve minor disagreements. Violence was acceptable in my family, the community and throughout society. My father, an ex-boxer, provided 2 sets of gloves to his children and constructed a boxing ring in a small corner of the basement. We were encouraged to settle our disputes in the cellar. Everybody in the family, including the girls, had used those gloves to straighten out a dispute.

As my siblings and I sought to adjust and live in the new environment, we were confronted at various times by other children. Such challenges are quite common among kids in an effort to "size up" a newcomer to the playground. After the initiation, fighting would continue to happen in a spontaneous manner. I can't actually recall my first act of violence towards another person. It may have been the moment I pushed another kid off my tricycle. He must have been too slow in removing himself. As a victim, the initial time was probably a beating by my father because of a behavioral problem. How else does a four year old boy learn?

The threat of violence has always been present in my life. I was constantly on guard and tried to maintain a defensive posture, anticipating a sudden "sucker punch" from a nameless and faceless source. With such expectations, I was always reacting to situations from an emotional perspective instead of using my intellect.

Domestic violence was common in my family household. In recent years, it has been reported to the legal authorities on a regular basis, but I don't know any family member calling the police to our house. It was simply unacceptable to talk about family matters with any non-family person. My father used violence as a disciplinary enforcement and to illustrate a specific point with my siblings. I learned as a child that a way to force another human being to either listen to you or behave in a certain manner was to exhibit physical force. The primary lesson was taught by my father and supplemented by other male figures in my life, who may have exemplified a distorted sense of masculinity.

There were other skills that I was able to acquire by observing adult men. I learned that the use of alcohol and drugs was acceptable in my family, the community and society. Although the use of violence, alcohol and drugs, in varying degrees, was illegal, I was unaware of any concerted effort to stifle the abusive trend during the sixties. Recovery programs may have existed, though I did not think I needed such assistance. Besides, I did not know of any success stories.

For me, the combination of these three ingredients (violence, alcohol and drugs) created a lot of pain and suffering in my life. This group factored in an experience that resulted in the death of a young man and I became a teenage killer.

On the night of October 20, 1971, I was highly intoxicated. I was en route to purchase more drugs when I met a guy I knew from high school. He told me that he knew of an individual in Boston who sold better stuff at a discount and suggested that we combine our money to enable us to purchase more reefer and pills. I decided to make the trip with him and later that evening joined him and a woman, who drove us to Boston.

Upon arriving in Boston, we went to a location to contact this individual to purchase drugs. We were unsuccessful and decided to look elsewhere. It seemed like we rode around for hours. I must have dozed off for a few moments, and the next thing I remember is standing on a sidewalk with two people in front of me. I knew one of them. We had rode together in the car to Boston. The other guy was unknown. I was several feet away from them on an unlit street. An argument seemed to be developing between them. As I stepped towards them, I saw a pistol in the hand of the person that rode to Boston with me. The other male was moving to another vehicle.

Growing up, I never wanted to be taken advantage of, and on that particular night, I felt frustrated because I had wasted a lot of time riding around in search of drugs. I wanted this to be my last effort to get drugs for the night. Because I was really high and tired that night, my drug induced senses were telling me that the other male either had my money or he had the drugs and did not want to sell them. Why was he going to the car? From my past experience of this nature, I had learned never to let anyone take something that belonged to me. However if someone tried, I had learned that the only way to stop this was through violence.

So, as the man got into his vehicle, I grabbed the gun from the person on the sidewalk with me, went to the driver's window and asked him about some drugs. I placed the gun through an opening in the window. He said, "no drugs here" and attempted to pull away form the curb. When he pulled out, I was jolted from my position and the gun went off. I ran. I had never fired a gun in my life before. The sound of it had really startled me and I was scared. I didn't think he was hit and I certainly didn't think I had killed him.

I was responsible for the death of this man and was tried, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. The members of the jury selected life instead of death by electrocution and I have remained in prison for the past 27 years. I never planned to kill anyone and have regretted this horrible act for a long time.

In retrospect, an act of violence could lead to murder. I never understood the consequences of violent behavior and that I am responsible for the death of another human being.

Review of the Literature

There are many studies about teenager problems and the serious issue of violence. The consensus among the experts is that violent offenders were (probably) subjected to a form of violence and/or abuse at home, school or in the community during the childhood years. (Finkelhorn & Baron, 1986; Krivo & Peterson, 1996).

A National Institute of Justice funded study found that experiencing childhood abuse and neglect increased the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 53%, or arrest as an adult by 38%, in committing a violent crime. (Widon, 1992). According to Webster's 1992 edition, violent is described as: "impetuous, furious, outrageous, fierce, severe."

No parent wants to acknowledge their child as being a violent offender, in part because of a reluctance to trace the root of the problem. In using the metaphor of the tree, family is primary in the development of the child and serves as the trunk. The roots are the characteristics of the youth and the branches are the interaction with society (McWhirter, and Hawley-McWhirter). It may be appropriate to introduce a comment from Thich Nhat Hanh, a poet and Zen master, on the issue of violence and its impact.

"if we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower, and
everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace." 1

In this country, over one-third of all fatal injuries are due to violence. The leading cause of death among black men, ages 15-24 years, is homicide.

James Fox, a Northeastern University professor, compiled statistics that reveal the rate of murder among teenagers doubled between 1985 and 1995. He believes two major factors are violence on television and the lack of adult supervision.

The testimony of Ronald G. Slaby, Ph.D. of Harvard University to the Judiciary Committee indicted American television for teaching violence to the children. More significantly, he listed 4 different effects that television violence may have on the viewer.2

It should be clear that television industry executives continue to produce programs with high levels of violence for children. Television is providing a primary source to learn and it has been documented that a higher rate of violent incidents is present in children's projects than regular programming. Dr. Slaby does raise these issues as a way to enlighten the casual viewer and unsuspecting parent about the problem of television violence. In addition, he offers suggestions to remedy a current trend that is having a negative impact on the society.

Violence has been viewed as a public health issue for the past 15 years. In 1984, then Surgeon General of the United States, C. Everett Koop, M.D., considered violence to be as significant to American Citizens as other major diseases in the history of this country. Even though he may have sounded the alarm, the general response was a nonthreatening issue. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, M.D., was a local voice who developed a project entitled, "Violence Prevention Curriculum for Adolescents: to be implemented in middle and high schools

aggressor - increased likelihood of behaving violently toward others;

victim increased fearfulness about becoming a victim of violence;

bystander - increased callousness and desensitization toward violence among others;

self-socialization increased self-directed behavior that increases one's risk of violence, such
as watching more television

In "The Many Names of Violence"work sheet, there are definitions and examples of the different types of violence throughout the world. The major focus is with interpersonal violence, which affects people in a direct manner and tend to be intentional. This is the type of violence that creates fear and shock in the hearts of the community.

According to available statistics, there are two factors consistent with most homicides. Guns and alcohol/drugs connected to a high percentage of assaults and murders.

The victim and the assailant tend to be acquainted and are certain to be of the same race. Approximately 47% of homicides were preceded by an argument between the victim and the assailant.

One form of violence that does not receive appropriate attention is suicide. It is a mental health issue and a form of violence to one's self. Some of the same factors (i.e. alcohol/drugs, guns) are present, as in traditional violence. Due to a rash of attempts and actual suicides in the South Boston community by teenagers, public outcry has produced some media coverage. Though inconclusive, there are some estimates that as many as 7,000 teenagers commit suicide each year and 400,000 kids try to end their life. (Hafen & Frandsen)

These children are referred to as "M & M Candy", hard on the outside and vulnerable, frightened and lost on the inside. Over 90% of the teenagers provide warning signs in advance and may be asking for help. For example, one may talk about death in a distorted manner and begin to give away prized possessions. Adolescents are suicidal for a period of time, not forever, and there are services available for the youth and family members.

Much like the response to violence, it has been advocated to abandon the search for underlying causes of crime and simply institute longer sentences and to build more prisons.

Despite the success of the prevention programs, further incarceration and punishment is displayed as the primary solution to this societal problem. Hence, the death penalty debate lingers in the living room of America to address the issue of violence. To stop the killing of human beings, the offenders must be killed. How absurd and ridiculous is the above statement? Violence will continue to exacerbate and the prisons will overflow with young, violent offenders, who were previously touched by violence themselves and are simply passing it on.

It is definitely an epidemic, as presented by James Gilligan, M.D., through his extensive treatise on the subject of violence. This is echoed by leading experts in the field. Dr. Gilligan traces the origin of violent behavior to the family, encouraged by social norms, and later reinforced from within the prison culture. Violent people will either die at a young age, end up in prison with behavioral disorders, or learn to change their response to crisis and problems.

Men in prison experience violence on a daily basis, by peer convicts and/or prison authorities, and many go to any length to injure themselves and other people. The author (Gilligan) examines the death of one's soul and the inability to love another and to practice self-love. A definition of shame, the opposite of pride, is the absence of this love of self.

Such numbness and emptiness causes decay to the soul and tend to produce a very negative attitude. One is capable of being violent, using words and gestures, without physical activity and the damage can be irreparable. Every violent act can lead to tragedy.

The news media is capable of producing hysteria through sensational coverage of a particular crime. As published in a recent Boston Globe article, news reporting in violence is not always accurate.

"…reports might make the visitor think the streets run red with blood. But law enforcement specialists say the high profile of these killings is masking a reality of increased safety."3

Even though violent crime has dropped in recent years, prison construction has increased at an alarming rate and approximately 2 million people are in restraints.

The Bureau of Justice statistics reveal that in this state deaths of women by domestic violence have dropped from 32 in 1995 to 16 in 1996, to 10 so far this year. However, with the alleged spousal killing of Anne Glenn at a Lowell bus stop with her children and the vicious murder of a suburban mother of 4, in which the unemployed husband was arrested, the news media has pumped up the image of terror in the community. The fear barometer goes through the roof whenever the victim is white and middle-class and the media does provide more coverage to violence in the suburbs.

Suggestions for a Brighter Day

The first step in any recovery program is to admit that one needs assistance. The primary reason for this admission is the need for the offender to recognize being out of control. Prevention programs may need to utilize the 12 step approach because it is extremely difficult for men, with a violent background, to admit defeat without the support network.

The Attorney General Janet Reno, announced last month that violent crime by teenagers dropped over 9% last year. Juvenile murder has decreased for the 3rd consecutive year, with the final being 10.7% in 1996. After school programs are being touted as playing a major role in the success of the juvenile crime problem. (Appendix 1)

Another explanation is the gun buy-back program that removes weapons from the streets. The most effective program may be the violence prevention projects that are in middle and high schools across this country. Even though at-risk children are likely to be subjected to negative environment, studies have shown that kids can be taught resilience to overcome societal obstacles and develop into productive human beings. (Appendix 2)

1 Nhat Hanh, Thich, "Being Peace", page 1, Parallax Press, 1987.

2 Slaby, Ronald G., Ph.D., "Television Violence: Effects and Remedies", testimony to the US House of Representatives, December 15, 1992

3 MacQuarrie, Brain "Scream of recent crimes outshout statistics." Boston Globe, page B1,
10/23/97.

Bibliography

Brown, Sandra L. "Counseling Victims of Violence: American Association for Counseling and Development, 1991.

Capuzzi, Dave & Gross, Douglas R., "Youth at Risk: A Resource for Counselors, Teachers and Parents", American Counseling Association, 1992.

Gilligan, James M. D., "Violence: Reflection on a National Epidemic", Vintage Books Edition, May 1997.

Hafen, B.O. & Frandsen, K. J., "Youth Suicide: Depression & Loneliness", Provo, Vermont, Behavioral Health Associates, 1986.

Rak, Carl F. & Patterson, Lewis E., "Promoting Resilience in at-risk Children", Journal of Counseling and Development Vol. 74 #4, page 368, (1996).

Sniffen, Michael J., "Violent crime by teenagers drops 9.2%, Springfield Union News, October 3, 1997.

Prothrow-Stith, Deborah, M.D., "Violence Prevention: Curriculum for Adolescents", Education Development Center, Inc. 1987.

Widom, C.S., "The Cycle of Violence" National Institute of Justice, U. S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC, (1992).

Additional Reading

Seeking Justice: Crime and Punishment in America (1995) Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, 250 Park Avenue, New York City, New York, 10017

Adolescent Violence: Troubled Times for Trouble Teens. Professional Counselor, Volume 12, #4 (August 1997).

How Justice Fails (report), Maxwell Taylor Kennedy. Doubletake, Fall 1997, page 69-76.