The Statement: Concern over violence against immigrants

Title: “Republican Mayoral Candidate Announces Crime Platform”

From: Otis Jennings, running for mayor as the Conservative Party candidate.

Type: Press Release from Jennings’s Web site

Date: Aug. 31, 2009

URL:  http://www.otisjennings.com/2009/08/31/1102/

What It Says:

In the Sept. 15 primary, Otis Jennings lost the Republican mayoral nomination political newcomer Steve Kimatian. Jennings remains in the race — running on the Conservative Party ballot line. Jennings also faces Democrat Stephanie Miner in the Nov. 3 election. In a press release on his Web site before the primary, Jennings details his plans for fighting what he calls, “a rising tide of violence.” He wants to increase the number of officers on the force.  As he talks about the relationship between Syracuse police and the public, Jennings raises concern about violence against immigrants. He says:  “Recently, there has been an increase in violence toward immigrants in our city. This is unacceptable. The number one function of government is to keep the peace and to keep EVERYONE (the emphasis is his) in the community safe.”

The Facts:

Jennings addresses two issues here:

“A rising tide of violence” in Syracuse.

Statistics from the FBI Database support Jennings’s view that violence has increased within the last few years. In 2004,  the city reported 1,322 cases of violent crimes. In 2008, the number had climbed to 1,366.

Violent crimes in Syracuse increased by 44 cases in the last five years. Yes, the number was rising. But “rising tide” is an overstatement.

• “Recently, there has been an increase of violence toward immigrants in our city.”

The Jennings campaign says immigrants in Syracuse are facing more violence, but there’s no hard evidence confirming this trend.  

Lt. Richard Trudell manages information systems at the Syracuse Police Department. He says most police reports only document the race of the victim. There’s often no way of telling whether or not the victim is an immigrant, unless specifically noted in the reports.

“I don’t necessarily think there’s been an increase,” says Trudell, “maybe just more coverage of it.”

In July 2009, The Post-Standard reported on several attacks against immigrants from Burma and Bhutan on the city’s North Side. Many other attacks go unreported, immigrants and those who work with them told the newspaper.

Derrick Dorsey is the Associate Director at Interfaith Works of Central New York. He spent the last year conducting “dialogue circles” on ease the tension between the immigrants and non-immigrants on the North Side. A dialogue circle is an open discussion between community members meant to resolve conflicts, such as discrimination and violence. In working with many of the immigrant groups, Dorsey learned many times violent acts were not even reported.

“The immigrants have their apprehension about law enforcements from their native land” said Dorsey. “They didn’t feel comfortable and that level of trust so they would just take it.”

As for the actual number of violent acts against immigrants, Dorsey said, he doesn’t know. But he says people are now more “empowered” to report the acts as a result of the “dialogue circles.”

Conclusion:

With a 3.3 percent increase of violent crimes over the last five years, Jennings’s “rising tide” of violence is an exaggeration. On an increase in violence against immigrants, the Jennings campaign offered no specific numbers or examples. Both the Syracuse Police Department and organizations that work closely with the immigrant population report no hard statistics to verify this trend. But immigrants and those who work with them have told The Post-Standard about several attacks against immigrants. And, they told the newspaper, many others go unreported.

(Jessica Shaw is a dual major in finance and broadcast journalism.)

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