by arthur Weinreb, associate Editor,
May 5, 2004
Look outside the window, there’s a woman being grabbed
They’ve dragged her to the bushes and now she’s being stabbed
Maybe we should call the cops and try to stop the pain
But Monopoly is so much fun, I’d hate to blow the game
and I’m sure it wouldn’t interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends.
These words were written by folksinger Phil Ochs in the 1960s after the murder of Kitty Genovese. Shortly after 3 a.m on March 13, 1964, a man approached the 28-year-old Genovese as she was returning to her Queens New York apartment from her job as a bar manager. The attacker grabbed her and she screamed, "Oh my god, he stabbed me! Please help me!" Lights went on and windows opened in the nearby apartment buildings. One man yelled "Let that girl alone".
When it was all over Kitty Genovese lay dead and it was determined that a total of 38 people had seen or heard the attack, yet did absolutely nothing about it. It was well over half an hour until the first call to the police was made. Kitty Genovese became a symbol for the indifference of people who witness a crime and refuse to even call the police for help let alone intervene.
The 1960s are gone but many of our political leaders are children of that era. On april 21, 45-year-old Toronto resident Laura Russo had just picked up her daughter from air Force cadets. On their way home, Russo stopped at a sandwich shop. Ordering with her back to the front of the store while daughter Krista remained in the car, the restaurant was hit by a barrage of bullets and Russo lay paralyzed on the floor. She is now out of danger, but the prognosis is that she will never walk again.
In addition to Krista, Russo has a 16-year-old severely disabled daughter and a 19-year-old son in university. While Louise held a part time job, she spent most of her time caring for her daughter Jenna who needs full time care. She still found time to do volunteer work in the community and fundraise for Ontario Cerebral Palsy.
Unlike the Queens neighbourhood of 40 years ago, the community was quick to offer help. a trust fund has been set up to provide for the care that Louise will no longer be able to provide her daughter, Jenna. The Toronto Catholic District School Board has set up a website and an email address so letters can be sent to Russo. Fundraisers are being planned for the family such as the one at O’Connor Bowl when a few hours will be set aside where the proceeds will be given to the family.
and what do our political leaders have to say about this senseless crime that struck down this hard-working, community-minded mother of three? absolutely nothing!
The leaders of all three levels of Toronto’s government couldn’t care less about violent crime and the lives of its upstanding citizens like Louise Russo and her family. as far as the federal government goes they have brought in the gun registry and nothing else has to be done. Estimated to cost $2 million at its inception the cost of the registry is now approaching $1 billion. It will do absolutely nothing to protect Canadians from the shooters of april 21. Providing for the safety and security of its citizens such as Louise Russo has never been a priority for this government.
The governing provincial Liberals are no better. Premier Dalton McGuinty also invokes memories of Phil Ochs who once defined liberals as people who are 10 degrees to the left of centre in good times and 10 degrees to the right of centre when it affects them personally. McGuinty was, as Paul Martin would say, mad as hell when his teenage son was the victim of a mugging. Yet he told Ontarians to relax; that crime rates are going down. It’s unlikely that the Russo family is doing much relaxing now.
and then there’s the local government with cop-hating Mayor David Miller and his band of left wing councillors. Miller would rather make jokes about police corruption than see that the police have the proper funding to fight violent crime. Miller feels that the best way to prevent violent crime is to build more basketball courts and open more community centres. Louise Russo won’t be able to play basketball but she and her family will have the honour of paying for the courts.
When someone like Louise Russo becomes the victim of a violent crime, the politicians look, yell a bit, and do absolutely nothing. They have become Kitty Genovese’s neighbours of 40 years ago.
Donations to the Russo family can be made at any branch of the CIBC to account number 1421638, transit number 06622.
Messages for Louise can be sent to: louise.russo@tcdsb.org