We have the power to end social problems in our community

I'd like to clarify a point I made in my last article, about the home being a starting point for self-destructive tendencies and violence. Broken homes are often the result of broken communities, and broken communities are often the result of systemic organizational failures.

There are plenty of entities purposed with protecting the people, designed to the disenfranchised, that are instead creating more problems than solutions for people experiencing hard times. The Department of Human Services, Police Department, District Court and City Council, to name a few, seem to be more effective at taking people away from their families than actually serving and protecting individuals and families in need. On the surface, all seems well with these organizations - no news is good news, right? Look a little closer, however, and you'll see children taken out of their homes and sold to strangers; juveniles condemned to the prison pipeline for petty misdemeanors; women and men still indebted, forever stigmatized for crimes they've already done their time for; more ticketing than crime stopping; more time, attention, and funding reserved for road-fixing than for community-building.

These entities should be held accountable for systematically failing to support the individuals, families, and neighborhoods they were put in place to support. I think it's time we, as a community start taking our neighborhoods back, stop allowing these injustices to continue, and simply say, 'No more.” It's understandable that many will be afraid to speak out, scared to stand up out of fear of retaliation. But I believe this is what we must do, because closed mouths don't get fed. The same goes for stopping gun violence in our neighborhoods - if we want it to end, we need to stand up and demand that it ends.

There are a lot of good but troubled people in our community, doing the best they can to support themselves and provide for their families, parents trying to be more involved in their kids' lives, youngsters looking for something constructive and meaningful to do with their time. But if we, as individuals as well as a whole community, aren't there for these people when they need a hand up, then we don't have much room to complain when they bring their troubles out into our streets. Again, I say reach one, teach one - because each of us has the power the put an end to social problems in our community; it starts with the courage and willingness to speak up, reach out, and see those problems for what they really are.

' Terry Aron is a father and a deacon at Living Waters Kingdom Church in Cedar Rapids. Comments: editorial@thegazette.com