Impact of crime

Crime has a terrible impact on people's lives. Recently, a young woman and child came out of church to see their car had gone . The lady was very upset, in a state of shock. She rang the police to report the crime. The church was very supportive but that did not change the violation that had taken place. The disappearance of the car and the lady's reaction reminded me of my own experiences as a victim of crime. The first reaction always seems to be one of disbelief and denial. When burgled a few years ago, I remember looking at the empty space where the TV had been wondering why my brother, who lived there at the time, would have taken the TV to my parents. Slowly I realised we'd been burgled. Again, that sense of violation. Someone had been in your space. A more detached but similar reaction happened when the lady"s car was taken. The day before, there had been a street party in the road, everyone relaxed, enjoying themselves. No cars. Kids out playing football in the street - a safe comfortable space. Then. less than 12 hours later the theft in the same road. Crime breeds mistrust between people. Rather than reacting generously towards our fellow human beings, suspicion creeps in. Crime has always been around. Wanstead is a relatively low crime area. There have been a number of incidents recently, theft from shops on the high street, stealing of cars and some muggings. The police have been alerted. They will take action, just so long as crimes are reported. If they are not reported, how will the police know there is crime going on in the area? The police, though, are only part of the answer to crime. They are essentially social refuse collectors, picking up the pieces. Ofcourse, if the perpetrators are more likely to get caught, then this acts as a deterrent - it is though only part of the answer. Also, in the police's defence, the service has been run down in the past 14 years, with a lack of resourcing. This has come at a time of growing demands on the police. What also needs addressing is the inequalities in society. Criminals target wealthy areas and this is a wealthy area, compared to many. The cost of living crisis has pushed many to the brink, some will be stealing to survive. Others ofcourse are part of organised crime. There was a report recently about shoplifting to order - operations stealing for other businesses. So crime is very much a multi-faceted thing. There are a myriad of approaches needed to address the problem. More resources for the police, a genuine closing of the inequality gap and help for those struggling most. Also, support for the family and community cohesion. But as individuals we can also help by reaching out to those effected. Offer support, when needed. This can be in person or on social media. Less helpful is people hyping crime on social media, so fostering an atmosphere of fear and anxiety. We can all do something to address these problems, so try to reach out and help, whenever possible.