Forum explores safety perceptions

Students, faculty and community members met in the Smith-Penniman Room of Houston Hall last night in an attempt to address some of the misconceptions about crime in the area surrounding the University. The forum was the first in a series set up to improve relations between the University and the community beyond campus boundaries. Among those who participated in the discussion were 16-year-old West Philadelphia resident Cynthia Preston and Lieutenant Sue Holmes of University Police Victim Support and Special Services. Assistant Dean for Spruce Street House Carla Armbrister acted as mediator. Holmes began the discussion by relating statistics about the rate of crime on campus. "Crime has decreased drastically since the 1980s," she said, citing a 53 percent drop in robberies and attempted robberies between 1994 and 1995, in addition to an 11 percent drop in simple assaults, a 25 percent drop in burglaries and a 41 percent decrease in theft from vehicles. Holmes did report a rise in aggravated assault, but said there were only four cases reported in 1994 and six cases reported the following year. "What has gone up is the fear of crime," she added, attributing some of people's misconceptions to the media's portrayal of random acts of violence. Holmes alluded to many problems in the community, including poverty, despair and apathy, which stem from difficulty in the shift from an industrial to technological society. She identified these as the root of the crime problem. She also said that individual people need to start taking responsibility for the violence around them. She emphasized the need for more visible police presence, expanded safety education and training, improved communication and revised federal standards. Among the organizations taking action is the Squirrel Hill Community Police sub-station, located at 4619 Chester Avenue. In the one year the station has been open, there has been a 26 percent decrease in the crime in that area, Preston said. "A lot of Penn students are very naive when it comes to street smarts," Holmes added, emphasizing the need for students on and off campus to familiarize themselves with their neighbors and surroundings. "There is danger on this side of 43rd Street," she said. "And there are beautiful places to live beyond it." One of the issues discussed was the extent to which members of the University should feel a responsibility to the surrounding community. "The fate of the University is intertwined with that of the community," Holmes added. "You can build a wall, but it won't do anything –– you can't separate them." Engineering junior Rachel Sheinbein agreed. "We, as students, are guests in this city," she said. "But a lot of us have the attitude that everyone should cater to us. "We have to start looking at the members of the surrounding community as individual people and families," she added. "We are not entering a war zone when we come to Penn." The next University-community forum is scheduled for April 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the Ben Franklin Room of Houston Hall. The topic of discussion will be race relations.