RESIDENTS TAKE BACK CHATHAM NEIGHBORHOOD

Effort Outlined To Parents Here

Drugs are a problem everywhere - but according to Chatham's Marjorie
Crew, standing idly by and accepting that is not the answer.

Last week Crew, organizer of Chatham's East Side Pride neighborhood
group, spoke to about 40 concerned parents, educators and police
officers about fighting back against drugs in the community.

For members of Leamington's Every Child Has Obstacles (ECHO), the
main concern is the drug use amongst area teenagers.

Crew admits the problem is not quite the same as the one she has been
dealing with - but told the group they can apply the things that
worked for her group to make things better here.

"We're the dough," she told them, "not a cookie cutter."

For Crew, it has been a long journey - one that eventually helped
reduce the number of drug houses and prostitutes in her rather tough
eastside neighborhood.

After tiring of seeing the drug dealers and prostitutes frequenting
her Chatham neighborhood, Crew decided to try and make a difference.
It began in 1999 with a murder in Crew's neighborhood at a bar known
as a drug haven.

On the streets, Crew said, everyone was talking about the victim and
the suspect - but not to police.

"There was a code of silence," said Crew, "the drug dealers
maintained control of our neighborhood."

But she said it eventually "irked me - we'd had it".

It was then that she wrote a letter to the Chatham Daily News
describing the situation in her neighborhood.

"We couldn't use our streets or enjoy our neighborhood," she said. A
reporter then called - wanting to tell her story.

Crew spoke to the reporter of a lack of police presence, their
response time, dealers selling drugs openly in their neighborhood and
the obvious presence of prostitutes.

Crew didn't want to put her family at risk - and she didn't expect
any photographs.

But when the story came out, there, splashed across the front page in
full color was Crew.

The issues Crew described: drugs and related crime; prostitution;
property standards' violations; drug havens; and the inability of
families to enjoy the neighborhood park.

Despite the fear of retaliation and a lack of trust in the police and
the community, Crew moved ahead with plans to take back her
neighborhood - and East Side Pride was formed.

It took persistence and a lot of hard work but two years later they
had gained the support of the police and began their 'community strolls'.

Wearing easily identifiable sweaters, Crew said they walked through
the neighborhood in groups, making it a little uncomfortable for the
drug dealers and prostitutes to conduct their business.

But Crew said the purpose of the strolls is not to confront the
neighborhood criminals - it's to observe and witness, act as a
visible deterrent, be respectful, socialize and get exercise.

"I had my first window smashed the night we started that program,"
she said. But Crew refused to back down - in fact, it only made her
more determined.

The keys to the success of the group, according to Crew, a
partnership with the Chatham Kent Police Service, a strong collective
will, a community that wanted change, support from all levels of
government and the support of the justice system.

One of the important things, she said, is to empower the community.
But Crew warned the group that change takes time.

"You must do it slowly," she said.

While she admits her neighborhood is still not 'crime-free', she said
they have enjoyed some tremendous successes.

"Over 50 drug houses were closed," she said, as well as a noticeable
decline in criminal activity in the neighborhood.

The key, she said, patience, persistence and positivity.

Sergeant Shawn Mungar, liaison officer for ESP, admits he was a
little skeptical and wary of the group at first.

He said he took their criticism of the police in the initial article
very personally and thought they were "a couple of women blaming the
police". "I got defensive," he said, "I felt we were being attacked."

But over time and through their actions, Mungar admits he began to
realize the commitment of the group and saw the impact they were
having on a rather rough area.

He said the relationship and the line of communication between the
groups is excellent now.

"I thought she (Crew) was just another woman wanting to save the
world," he laughed, "the crazy lady on the east end."

But he credits Crew for empowering her community, as well as the
police, to help get the job done.

Mungar said it is very important to follow through once a group is
established. "Don't just say you're going to do it - do it," he said.

ECHO executive member Kelly Drummond said she was impressed by what she heard.

Drummond said there will be a different focus here - specifically on
the teenagers, but said they will definitely take what they heard
from Crew and apply it to their own group wherever possible.

With her group more or less in its infancy, Drummond said they will
take baby steps in their attempt to reduce the drug use amongst the
community's young people.

In the near future, Drummond said she hopes to join Crew on one of
her 'community strolls' to "see her in action".

Tags: drugs, Chatham

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