Knife Crime Nonchalance (From East London and West Essex Guardian Series)

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Every two months the Forest Flava Press Gang, a group of 30 budding journalists picked from schools across the borough, write Youth Flash for the Waltham Forest Guardian. This month the subject is knife crime.

Knife Crime Nonchalance

11:43am Friday 24th October 2008

By Indre »

It's not that I don't care about knife crime and it's not that I don't believe it's not a big deal or a serious issue. But after it being talked about in school for about five years; it being talked about and seen on the streets, then coming home and seeing it on the news; I, along with most teens, just switch off.

That's just it you see, it's all talk.

I don't believe there is actually anything being done about it. All I do know is, all the big, important people get together because they “care” and they “want to stop it” but while they have these cosy get-togethers, sipping some nice tea, there's more and more people getting stabbed to death on the streets.

At first it used to shock me, I thought it was so sad people getting stabbed because of their postcode – it's ridiculous. But of course, we must give them some credit, the armed teens out there. It's not just the huge “I come from e10 and you don't” issue that lives are being taken for. I once heard a story about a girl who stepped on another girl’s shoe and paid for it with a knife to the heart. I’m guessing a simple “Excuse me” just didn't cut it.

So it's not that I don't care about knife crime, I've simply learnt to live with it, and realise that unless big changes are made and drastic measures are taken, it will not go away.