LETTER: Pernicious Nonsense

I would like to respond to the pernicious nonsense contained in a recent column by Sarah Goldfine and Theresa Weir on Sam's Place (DP 2/10/92). First, they appear ignorant of the fact that the Spruce Hill and Garden Court areas have not recently gentrified, but have been integrated communities for over forty years. The claim that "yuppies" have invaded a formerly black area and driven out its residents simply isn't true. Secondly, they fail to understand the beleaguerment felt by area residents, black and white, at the constant threat of theft, assault and bodily injury at the hands of thugs. Sam's has now been held up five times since the start of the new year; a clerk has had a brick thrown in her face by someone seeking to rifle the cash register. Out of a fear of robbery and assault, the night clerk requested a permit to carry a gun. The shooting of Andre McNatte -- who had threatened the clerk with a butcher knife -- was indeed a tragedy, and it is appropriate to consider the larger political context of his death, but defending criminals and ignoring the well-justified concerns about crime (or labeling them racist) is simply stupid. I wish incidents of crime were rare, but unfortunately they are all too common in our society. Fear of violent crime corrodes the possibility of social and civic life, and the closing of Sam's as a result of the latest robbery -- rather than an ineffectual boycott -- is part of the process making life in this city increasingly difficult for everyone. More police and more jails will not solve the problem, but until people feel secure in their communities, they cannot get on with the task of creating economic and political justice for all. Finally, readers should note that in boycotts of Korean merchants who have shot would-be robbers, Uhuru supporters have carried signs showing blacks shooting Asians. Now that is racist. ERIC SCHNEIDER Assistant Dean College of Arts and Sciences