BOSTON: A CITY IN NEED
Three significant material issues facing our city include youth violence, poverty, and homelessness. 

Youth violence

In 2005, there were 75 homicides in the city of Boston -- the highest figure in ten years. In 2006, there were 74 homicides.1 Both years saw hundreds of non-fatal shootings.2 In 2007, Boston is poised to surpass those numbers. What is, perhaps, more alarming is that the young people caught up in this youth violence epidemic are younger than ever. Of these homicides almost 30 percent have been teenagers and 50 percent of the victims of gun violence have been between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one.3 The first homicide victim in 2007 was a 14-year-old boy leaving a house party at six in the morning. His killing came just over a month after two girls, ages 14 and 15, and two boys, 16 and 17, were shot at a house party at three in the morning. In less than a month in March 2007, an 11-year-old was arrested for bringing a gun to class, a 5-year-old was shot in the back of a car and both a 1-year-old and her 17-year-old father were shot as he cradled her in his arms.

While this violence affects all of Boston, the bulk of it has been sustained by the neighborhoods of Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan. While the statistics are troubling, the greater concern is the effect this violence is having upon the youth living in these neighborhoods. Most know someone who has been killed, and are concerned for their own safety. While many youth have responded to this constant threat by avoiding significant portions of their neighborhoods, still others have determined that the best solution is to carry guns themselves, thus perpetuating the cycle of violence.

Due to safety concerns, George has felt compelled to drop out of school and is hesitant to travel to certain areas of the city or even use mass transportation. Doug currently is currently on probation with Department of Youth Services because he chose to protect himself with a firearm. Before his arrest he had been shot at on multiple occasions and had lost a family member to violence.7

The senseless killing of a 22-year-old Michigan State student visiting Boston prompted a prominent Dorchester pastor to warn, "You will take your life into your own hands if you travel to Boston." As this senseless wave of shootings and killings continues to take a heavy toll on Boston's young people, the bulk of the state's taxpayer dollars fund law enforcement, prisons and prosecutions rather than more redemptive programming and services. While city and state leaders focus on more arrests and more police, young people in the neighborhoods of Dorchester, Mattapan and Roxbury continue to approach a deadly precipice with few mechanisms in place to stop them.

Poverty

In Boston, the financial and intellectual hub of the second wealthiest state in the nation, the percentage of the population living in poverty has jumped from 16% to 22% in the last 35 years.2 An estimated 116,000 people in Boston -- 35,400 of which are under the age of 18 -- presently live in poverty.2 In 2005, Boston was ranked the most expensive city in the country to live in. That year, when the estimated cost of living in Boston for a family of four was $64,656, the federal poverty threshold for the same-sized family was $19,971.4,5

Though alarming, these statistics reveal little about the daily struggles of those living in poverty. Many of these families and individuals are forced to choose daily between the basic needs of shelter, food, medical care, and clothing. Those who are able to procure subsidized housing often find themselves in overcrowded unhygienic buildings located in the most violent areas of the city.

Beatrice’s life is a case model of these struggles. She shares a three bedroom apartment with her five children, grandchild and mother. The electricity often does not function properly, the kitchen walls are overrun with mold and the septic system continually malfunctions and overflows. Yet, rent for this apartment consumes the majority of Beatrice’s monthly income and she is often unable to pay the utility bills and has to regularly frequent food pantries to feed her family.7

Homelessness

The increase of poverty in Boston has inevitably led to the rise of homelessness within the city. Since 1992 the homeless population has increased by more than 30% and has continued to rise at a rate of 8-12% per year.2 The city’s 2005-06 census of homeless individuals revealed that on any given night there were approximately 6,365 homeless men, women and children on the streets or in shelters, including 2,325 in families. Of this population, families are the fastest growing sector with a 24% increase over the past year.6 Contrary to the stereotypes about the homeless, the majority of these individuals have at least a high school diploma and at least one working adult in their household. Despite the fact that over half of the homeless in Boston are mothers and young children, most of us perceive the stereotypical homeless person as a male alcoholic drug addict. Yet the majority of these individuals became homeless due to circumstances beyond their control.

Linda is a single mother of three who lost her home six months ago because of a major illness that led to her loss of the job that had paid for her subsidized housing. Because she has a teenage son, none of the city shelters would take her in. As a result, she has moved from the living room of one family member or friend to the next and has lived in ten different places over the last six months.7

References

  1. Boston Homicides in 2007: [Web Site]
  2. Boston Public Health Annual Report, 2007: [Web Site | PDF Document]
  3. Boston Report of the Special Committee on Youth Violent Crime Prevention: [PDF Document]
  4. The Boston Globe, Report Rates Boston Most Expensive City, 9/8/05: [Online Article]
  5. The Greater Boston Housing Report Card 2005-2006: [PDF Document]
  6. Boston Annual Homeless Census, December 19, 2005: [PDF Document]
  7. These stories, recorded 5/07, describe actual people and events, though the names have all been changed.


Additional Resources

Park Street Church | 1 Park Street, Boston, MA 02108