Underhill Mugging: Cop says satchel-wearers should move

That sounds pretty ridiculous! Crime is up in the entire 77 pct, hence it being designated an Operation Impact precinct. These idiots will Rob not anyone whom they presume to have anything of value and an easy target. There have been numerous arrests for Robberies in that area but there are still many entrenpeneurs out there. The rash of recent "mugging" threads is only the tip of the iceberg. I'm glad people are sharing their experiences on here, but i't appears to be creating a Hysteria on this board. Don't live in fear! Be aware of your surroundings, and if you see something say something!

King without a crown wrote: That sounds pretty ridiculous! Crime is up in the entire 77 pct, hence it being designated an Operation Impact precinct. These idiots will Rob not anyone whom they presume to have anything of value and an easy target. There have been numerous arrests for Robberies in that area but there are still many entrenpeneurs out there. The rash of recent "mugging" threads is only the tip of the iceberg. I'm glad people are sharing their experiences on here, but i't appears to be creating a Hysteria on this board. Don't live in fear! Be aware of your surroundings, and if you see something say something!

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Why would anyone want to live under these dangerous conditions, I understand the Police can't be everywhere and these are crimes of opportunity and are almost impossible for them to stop ,they are doing the best they can.

The real responsibility for your safety is up to you.

If I lived in a war zone I would pack my bags and take my family to a less hostile community ,as I have done in the past.

It's your choice ,danger or comfort.

absurd. Not gonna run. why abandon the area. We just move here six months ago. I live on park and walk up underhill at any time of the day and night. I have not had a problem. I watch where I go and am aware of anyone around me. I frequently see others who I consider my peers (working stiffs) and carry on. FYI. I dont carry a satchel. 8)

that advice from the police sounds rather absurd.

CALLING ALL WHITE CLEAN CUT MEN WITH MESSENGER BAGS. FLEE! FLEE THIS EVIL PLACE!

good thing i have longer shaggy hair i guess? according to that i'm slightly more safe cause i look like i can't afford a hair cut (i can't, who wants to fix this nest in exchange for a beer).

wonder they tell black kids with satchels that get assaulted? so ridiculous!
keep in mind that many of our police officers want to live outside of the city, and so to my mind have a warped perception of life here
phooey

ParadeRest wrote: This is all hearsay.

#1 Sorry, this isn't a court of law Judge.
#2 The first post contains a first person account, which is what is being discussed.

Ack, sorry, you are right. Still worth discussing though, the purported sentiment of the officers is something that many have witnessed firsthand in the neighborhood, myself included on more than one occasion. I have had an officer point blank tell me that I am the wrong color to be out in the neighborhood.

Subject: The Truth Hurts

I've refrained from commenting on the recent "crime" threads because I know my opinion will probably be an unpopular one. I've said this in the past, and I'll say it again---white people moving into the 'hood are targets. Muggings, robberies, and harassement are unfortunate, but it comes with the lower rents and cheaper apartments. That said, I don't think its right and I certainly feel bad for the people who are targeted. The crime wave (if that's what it is) is symptomatic of the anger and rage caused by socioeconomic disparity, poverty, and a sense of hopelessness. I'm not saying anything new. Racism in this country is alive and well and it manifests itself in many ways. When black kids connect racism and white men with keeping them in the hood, they're going to lash out at those people (white) when they cross into territory that they perceive as belonging to them. Its an easy opportunity to get back at the people that you blame for your situation. While the roots of racism and poverty run deep, in a place like Prospect Heights, the disparities are right there for everyone to see---in black and white. Poor black kids living side by side with white people who make 100k and more a year. Section 8 folks live in the same buildings as young, oftentimes white, professionals. The economic disparities are glaring, and the result is rage...Some of you may know this--I'm a writer. When I first started writing about Gentrification almost 10 years ago, I asked one very simple question: If we can't live in the ghetto---then where in the world can WE live???

I am the first to admit that this is indeed, a black/white issue. I have lived in PH for almost 13 years and I have never been mugged, harrassed, intimidated, or robbed. I moved here when the brokers on 7th ave wouldn't show me apartments in Park Slope. They kept refering me to shitty little apartments across Flatbush ave, and as a result of redlining, I ended up on Prospect Place. I am well dressed, I carry an Ipod, I walk alone at night, I talk on my cellphone, I look like a "professional," and while I don't carry a satchel, I do carry large handbags. I am also an African-American woman and I look about 22. Back in my hometown, I was one of those low-income African-American kids just trying to escape the 'hood. In an odd way, I did. So, when I see those kids, I see myself, and I understand why they feel the way they do. At the same time, I understand that robbing someone may get you an Ipod, but not a ticket out of the ghetto. At worst, I've been solicited for dates or complimented one too many times while walking down the street. I see those kids at the corner of Underhill and Sterling, and I can understand how people (white people) would find them scary and intimidating. They hang out in groups, wear puffy coats with hats pulled down low, and seem a bit menacing. But I've walked past those teens with my IPOD, I've told them (sternly) NOT to lean on my car, I've said hello to them. They know my dog. And me. By face. I know some of them by name. These are NOT bad kids. But many of them are poor, misguided, angry, hopeless, and young. And to be honest, I'm not sure what the solution to this escalating problem is, but I can only believe that it will get worse before it gets better.

After 13 years in PH, I've been looking for a new place to live. I'm not saying it will happen tomorrow, but I'm moving on. And its not because of the escalating crime. The dog shit, chicken bones, trash, catcalling, snooty new people, misguided old-timers, tenement living, alternate side of the street parking, long lines at Tom's, nasty sidewalks, lack of Shitake mushrooms and grass fed lamb, have simply become too much for me to bear. I'm saving my $$ and planning an exit strategy...Its time for me to move.

Carry a satchel, check. Come home from work via Underhill and Prospect, check. Think I better postpone that haircut.

Subject: Race

I completely agree with RBG!!! I think most of the people who are on this board need to realize that this is more than people getting mugged it is also about race... I moved here with my parents when crack and burnt out buildings ruled Prospect Heights, when a 3 bedroom apartment was 600 bucks a month, this is in the mid 80´s. It was not a safe place to be but i never heard of people getting mugged, never heard of people being beat up, even though this was a shitty place to live evryone knew eachother. As as the years have gone by the neighborhood has become more and more expensive, there is no place for people who have lived here all their lives to afford and live here, poverty is very clear amongst minorities and if i was apoor guy in my 20´s with no prospects in my life and running out of options and basically being ran out by a bunch of yuppies i would probably mug them too. Prospect heights has become a place for the have´s and the have not´s that have lived here for 30 years or so are being driven out by high rent prices, this neighborhood is becoming a complete didsaster where people bitch about crime but refuse to see why it is happening...

Subject: Re: Race

kaki wrote: this neighborhood is becoming a complete didsaster where people bitch about crime but refuse to see why it is happening...

Or... people see why it's happening but still don't enjoy being mugged.

And are concerned enough about their neighbors, whether they know them personally or not, to tell them to be cautious via teh intarwebs.

That said, I think your basic premise - "have-not's" mugging people they *presume* to be "haves" - is correct.

leet wrote:

I think most of the people who are on this board need to realize that this is more than people getting mugged it is also about race...

Then perhaps we should apply the hate crimes rules to prosecution of these crimes.

Exactly.
If it were the other way around, Sharpton would have made an appearance months ago.

thanks RBG for your input on this, in my experience it's pretty dead on and so is kaki's response

i think it's time to stop taking petty offense at things,
time to stop worrying about who is blaming who for why one gets mugged
time to look at the issues squarely
time to see the common ground and not keep focusing on the differences
some of that requires looking at stuff from the other side of the fence
(and if that means from a black or a white perspective, so be it)
nothing about this is FAIR

it's not fair that people get pushed out of their homes by new people moving into a neighborhood who have gotten pushed out of theirs

it's not fair that the focus of the city's administration seems to be on keeping real estate interests happy over providing basic services for it's residents so that funding for after school programs, etc has become non existent

it's not fair that drug/gang culture is the most atractive option open to the kids in our communities

but these are the things we are all dealing with.

nothing is going to stop the wave of development that spreads from manhatten, but it can be tempered, it can be more humane, if people get together

i personally believe that if you come into a neighborhood you have a responsibility to acknowledge the community that already exists and most likely that will take an extra effort on your part (unless of course you wish to be perceived as an outsider and targeted as one).
true, ph has transitioned greatly in the past 5 yrs which maybe has created a sense of safety or even a skewed sense of its demographics, but while we, on these boards, might be hyper-concerned with the floating boundary between ph & ch, crossing washington ave isn't such a big deal for someone coming from the east.

increased police presence addresses one aspect of the rise in street crimes but to address the entire issue is going to require more than that

if a visible number of people who express concern on these boards for their safety got involved with working towards creating more productive opportunities for the youth in our community or for preserving affordable housing in the community some of this resentment might get dissipated

at a certain point you have to deal with the facts of the situation not what you think the situation should be

nothing is going to stop the wave of development that spreads from manhatten

A deep recession just might stop it.

Of course, I think the wave of development is one big reason why crime is dramatically down overall from ten years ago.

Subject: Re: The Truth Hurts

RBG wrote:
...lack of Shitake mushrooms and grass fed lamb, have simply become too much for me to bear. I'm saving my $$ and planning an exit strategy...Its time for me to move.

The farmers market has a cool mushroom guy and all sorts of organic/grass fed animals for your consumption.