Our communities have real societal monsters to fight; we neither need nor deserve made-up nightmares under our bed to scare us into blindly following a false narrative.
Emily Burton Sherman
| Opinion Contributor
Elvis fans rejoiced last week after learning the king was alive and well, spending his retirement under the blue moon of Kentucky. A photo even showed the coiffed 89-year-old in Pulaski County ready to rock his orthopedic blue suede shoes.
It took the truth a few days to surface. It usually does. Lies are powerful weapons, strong enough to raise dead rock stars and hide monsters in plain sight. More and more often, they are creeping into politics to huff and puff at our door.
It won’t take much for them to blow our house down if we don’t start taking such threats seriously. When too many of us believe outright whoppers, the truth drowns under a flotsam of poisonous, popular false narratives.
One particular lie has plagued Americans for years: the belief there is more crime each year than previously, a persistent untruth echoed in 23 of 27 similar Gallup surveys conducted since 1993.
People believe too many whoppers about crime
That’s a pretty stump speech waiting to happen. Too bad it isn’t true. We are safer today than we’ve been in years. Unfortunately, this fact will be immediately dismissed by a swath of the population.
That’s ok. The truth isn’t easy. It doesn’t tiptoe, afraid to leave footprints. It sits as a mountain to be discovered or ignored as you will, without malice. The brave explore it, the weak-minded fear it and politicians, well, sometimes they invest in a lot of dynamite.
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The truth is, national crime rates have been falling since the 1990s. As pointed out by the Pew Research Center, “the [national] violent crime rate fell 49% between 1993 and 2022, with large decreases in the rates of robbery (-74%), aggravated assault (-39%) and murder/nonnegligent manslaughter (-34%).”
The nation’s last spike in crime was in 2020, during President Trump’s presidency and COVID-19’s opening act. Crime rates have fallen annually since, according to the Council on Criminal Justice, which is why it is so surprising to hear any political candidate repeatedly purport crime is on the rise.
Our communities have real societal monsters to fight; we neither need nor deserve made-up nightmares under our bed to scare us into blindly following a false narrative.
Do not let fear rule you
Make no mistake, our neighborhoods cannot thrive if ruled by fear. Homes in a community become personal prisons when we are afraid of one another. Block parties, bike rides and good old-fashioned evening strolls all demand we feel safe enough to wander amongst our neighbors.
FDR said it best when he echoed the historic sentiment that “we have nothing to fear but fear itself.” A fake threat, like an imaginary crime wave, only serves to divide and weaken us. It becomes a potent shepherd’s staff for those after more power.
Of course crime exists. Drug abuse, homelessness, and poverty still fuel human suffering in one fashion or another. But at the very least, let us see our communities for what they are and work to heal their ills based on a true diagnosis, not political fear-mongering.
No, Elvis isn’t alive in Kentucky. (I can’t speak for elsewhere.) Yes, we are safer today than previously, even if our anxiety is on the rise. It’s time to see the shadows on the wall for what they really are – internet puppets dancing around the truth.
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Emily Burton Sherman resides in western Kentucky with her family, including their cats and occasional three-legged dog. She is an award-winning journalist, a columnist and an educator.
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Publish date : 2024-08-04 22:11:00
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