Getting to the root cause of gang violence

John Wood’s essay, “Confront L.A.’s monsters head-on” (Opinion, Aug. 9), urges us to confront gangs where they live, thinking that will stop them from their murderous ways.

I think that argument misses the boat. Instead, we should confront the poverty, poor education and family dysfunction in gang areas.

If we would spend part of the money for incarcerating criminals on improving the economic and educational opportunities for young people in low-income areas, it would do far more to reduce violence, as we would be getting at the root cause of most criminality.

In the same issue (“Where the killings occur”) you printed an interesting map of Los Angeles pinpointing by area the homicides in 1992 versus 2004. If you were to superimpose on those maps a chart showing the lowest-income areas of Los Angeles, you would find a remarkable match with the frequency of homicides.

LEE PETILLON

Palos Verdes Estates

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Having just read Wood’s piece, I would like to propose one more idea. Let’s start telling it like it is: Drive-by shooting is a cowardly act. Let’s start calling these people what they are: cowards.

SUSAN ALEXANDER LLAUGET

Arleta

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As a panelist whom Wood condemns for holding a community forum among city officials, police officers, religious leaders and community activists to address recent violence in Compton, I take exception to his intemperate accusations.

First, the essence of democracy is the assemblage of concerned citizens in a public forum to consider local issues.

Second, Wood suggests that, rather than holding news conferences at “the obligatory crime site[s],” we should “set up microphones and TV crews in front of” housing projects and other venues where, he assures us, the criminals reside and will therefore get the message.

Such reasoning is preposterous. In this day of pervasive electronic media, the perpetrators of these crimes will get the message even if we broadcast it from Antarctica.

A system that fosters family disintegration, perpetrates violence in the media, elevates war over education and marginalizes children of color is destined to face the wrath of its own creation: lawlessness among the outcasts in society. Until Wood addresses the systemic roots of this violence in America, he has no right to attack those who have assembled to stop it.

LEGRAND H. CLEGG II

Compton city attorney