Our Children are Good, the System is Bad

By Antranette Scott

“Some of them are just born bad…” Those are the words of Ray Kern, the owner of one of the shops in the French Quarter from which a group of boys (14yrs old, 15yrs old and 2 9yrs olds) stole a tip jar and $500.00. Kern told reporters that the boys “looked like pros” and he did not believe that anything could correct the juveniles. Now I want to get something straight before we even start: I am in no way saying that these youth were not wrong, but I believe that there is power (to elevate or to destroy) in how black youth are portrayed in media and also the criminalizing of youth at such a young age. I know that the majority of our readers have at one time stolen items; this false idea that kids are complete angels is used as justification to inject them into our criminal justice system.

In the city of New Orleans where the school to prison pipeline is ever present, it is important that we take a critical look at youth incarceration. We know that mass incarceration is not a solution to our crime problem, especially for youth, yet we are constantly bombarded with the same narrative of criminalization. This is looking at the symptoms instead the cause for a solution. The cause is a lack of quality public schooling, a lack of after-school and summer programs that are open and readily available to our city’s youth. We need summer jobs that pay a reasonable wage for our youth. We also need mentoring programs that pay mentors a living wage and that foster an interest in seeing our youth succeed.

A lot of folks are wondering where we are going to get the funds to operate these programs, and the workers to implement them… These programs are already paid for by our tax dollars. Looking at the 2018 City budget we know that out of $647 million dollars, 63% goes to cops, jails, and other reactionary measures. Only 3% goes to families and children, and only 1% goes to job development. Imagine what our city would look like if those numbers were reversed; if we divested from mass incarceration and invested in our youth. By making our youth a priority instead of pushing the narrative that ours are born criminals with no hope of becoming whole and healthy members of society, we will be taking concrete steps toward a way of living that uplifts us all.

Workers Voice Socialist Movement

We are workers, employed and unemployed, youth, students, and seniors. We are multi-racial and multi-national and organize for the unity of the working class. We are funded by and for workers, for the liberation of all workers and oppressed people.

We organize for jobs and higher wages, against racism, women’s, and LGBTQ oppression, and for solidarity with immigrants. We organize for community schools, lower rents, and food on our tables. We organize for workers’ power so that everything will one day be removed from the capitalists’ private ownership.

We oppose the Pentagon, which is looting our tax dollars and handing them over to war-profiteering private companies, while social programs are gutted. We oppose war for empire which is pursued only to lower our wages and plunder the world’s resources while destroying the environment. We reject the monopoly media who feed us lie after lie.

The labor of workers produces enormous wealth here in Louisiana, the U.S. and the world– so much wealth that everyone could have housing, meaningful jobs, education, healthcare, and genuine equality. But this wealth is stolen and privately owned by the capitalist class for their greed and profit. We believe that we, the workers of the world, can unite in revolution to overcome capitalism and build a better world.

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