Why does the jail population include more black individuals than any other racial community in the country?

March 21, 2013


How is it that so many of the killers of our youth are not behind bars, and free to kill again? What solutions do we have to these problems?
Many of our youth, the same ones who are at risk of dying from gun violence, who are in jail, who have dropped out, or are considering dropping out,
of school have suffered trauma caused by wars, domestic violence, and forced migration. I will attempt to explore the long-term effects of war and
political violence upon the youth who have come to live here in Canada. "Physical, psychological and emotional "...? problems? are the same thing as
trauma, they aren't the cause of trauma.

Exposure to war, ethnic cleansing, and political oppression causes psychological damage. Vivid memories of the smell of burning bodies and of harrowing
screams for help can lead to the re-living of such events long after the initial incidents.

Protracted war has affected many Somalis and people in other parts of Africa; the youth, particularly, have endured things that produce chronic and
everlasting stress and trauma. Some children have seen their parents wounded or killed, and their homes destroyed. They have learned first-hand
all the evil that comes from war.

Most Somali children have suffered some kind of humiliation, either directly or through the abuse of a family member; many have been exposed to the sound
of explosions in the form of bombs or shelling by tanks or artillery; and others have witnessed a martyr’s funeral. Through these and similar ordeals,
many of them have experienced acute trauma.

Some of these children suffer from nightmares, cannot stop thinking about the harsh life that they were exposed to, or constantly feel fearful and lonely.
Some easily become tense and nervous, or feel depressed. They develop social behavioural disorders, act defiantly, and become aggressive, and reject the
authority of parents and teachers. They also struggle academically, have difficulty concentrating on their studies, and are disruptive at school.

When they come to Canada, these children need psychological and social counselling, and help in preventing the recurrence of these patterns through
counselling, rehabilitation, and therapy.

Many of them have never even seen a school. The Canadian system of education that puts students in grade school according to their age will not work for
most of those who came from Africa without any schooling. Because of this lack of earlier schooling, the Somali Community in Toronto has a 36.7 percent
dropout rate. These students need special, intensive programs to give them a foundation for upgrading their education. At a new, billion-dollar jail in
Toronto my colleagues visited, no less than 80 percent of the inmates are of African origin! The staff? Ah, well... Most of the staff are white.
I'm sure you're familiar with the saying, "What's wrong with this picture?"

Conclusion

(To say they have abated means they have nearly stopped). In Somalia and elsewhere in Africa the exposure of children to such traumatic events is
something that, stated plainly, violates the human rights Canada holds so dear: "the right to live, to learn, to be healthy, to live with one's family
and community,to develop one's personality, to be nurtured and protected, and the right to enjoy childhood."

For them to be expelled from schools, to build more and bigger jails, and to permit the inundation of poor neighbourhoods by drugs and guns is clearly not the
answer. Regardless of their colour, these youth need the support of family, friends, relatives, teachers, and spiritual leaders. The very first
step is to keep them in school.

The unfortunate children of parents with poor education, however, receive less support and, therefore, often suffer more than others. While positive
personality traits can reduce post-traumatic disorder, community organizations and institutions must help to mitigate it. Communities must provide
critical assistance to needy families; they must provide settlement programs, after school activities, and outreach and mentorship programs, and
facilitate family unification.

They cannot, though, do these things by themselves; the government must support these communities in their efforts to provide the resources needed
to save lives.

Together we must restore in these children a sense of belonging, and of being cared for. We must provide them with regular classroom and school schedules
that reassure them with a sense of success, stability and safety. Let us spend billions building new schools for new lives for children with as much
potential as any others to be great.


Abdurahman Moallim Ahmed
CET, BA (Poli), MA (IRs)