A shooting occurred at 12:13 a.m. on Sunday near J and 18th streets downtown. The shooting killed VIctor Hugo Perez Zavala and injured three others.
Debate has now sprouted between Sacramento community members and authorities as to whether the art fair, Second Saturday, was to blame for the shooting.
Opponents of the art fair argue that what started out as a quirky midtown art exhibition has now grown into a big, fat excuse to get drunk and wander aimlessly.
Apparently, the root of all evil.
The fact of the matter is, Second Saturday ends at 10 p.m. and the shooting occurred at 12:13 a.m.
So maybe Second Saturday has turned into an excuse to drink and look at art, but that does not mean that every person in downtown Sacramento can't handle their liquor.
Second grade teachers don't scold the entire class because one class clown sticks a "kick me" sign to the back of the class nerd. Just like, the city of Sacramento shouldn't scold the entire Sacramento area for one person deciding to be real brave and shoot at a crowd of innocent people.
If you want a more relatable, slightly-offensive, but honest argument: just because one student at a university decides to pull out a gun, doesn't mean the city is going to close down the university forever.
Face it, we live in a world that is not filled with rainbows and butterflies, and I think everyone should recognize that, right now.
Crime is going to ensue if it wants to. The one thing the city can do is heighten their police force and maybe close the art fair down to a smaller area that is easier to maintain.
According to the Sacramento Bee, Mayor Kevin Johnson said in a written statement, "We will not turn our back to violence in the City of Sacramento. We will not hide. We will not run away. We will not dismantle a tremendously successful event enjoyed by tens of thousands of law-abiding residents. Second Saturday must and will continue."
While I don't agree with his phrasing, I do agree with his sentiment.
In the past, fairs, like Second Saturday, have been closed down due to similar events. In 1998, the city closed Thursday Night Market on the K Street Mall after crowds of young adults called prompted repeated police response, according to the Sacramento Bee.
The interesting thing about this is that Thursday Night Markets still occur weekly in downtown Folsom.
So, maybe the the city shouldn't have placed full blame of the weekly markets at the K Street Mall and instead should take a look at why the young adults in Folsom can handle it and we can't. Maybe the answer is more opportunities and education for the youth in our area. Just an idea.
Too often, in order to avoid a sticky situation, officials take extreme measures. For example, shutting down a popular art fair because one person lost it.
Sure, I suppose that's the easy way out. But this time, let's instead take a look at what was really the root of this shooting and go from there.
Hmm...the first time that you sit next to me in class and your column makes the exact same point as mine. Weird, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteI'm on to you.
People have to blame something. This is what happens when we don't have a suspect to berate, we take a good thing and pin the blame on that.
ReplyDeleteDante: don't flatter yourself.
ReplyDeleteLeia: agreed.
The columnist makes some pretty good arguments in this column.
ReplyDeleteOne line, though, seemed a little flip:
"Face it, we live in a world that is not filled with rainbows and butterflies, and I think everyone should recognize that, right now. "
I understand the sentence, but it seems little light considering how serious the incident was (one dead, three injured).
The columnist does a nice job of pulling in other Sacramento crime-related problems and comparing them to issues in Folsom.
Perhaps the gangs that are a problem in downtown and Midtown don't have transportation that far away. (Folsom)
I suppose that could be considered the upside of RT fare increases.
Overall, good column, pounded out mostly on deadline.