THE ENEMY IS CRIME; LET US UNITE AGAINST IT

Cape Girardeau's community policing program is in its infancy.

But it's been time enough for some people to feel targeted by this visible police presence. A downtown neighborhood meeting earlier this week turned into a fingerpointing match between blacks and whites.

This should not become an issue of race. It is a matter of crime -- and that's a concern for the community at large.

Two Cape Girardeau police officers -- Ike Hammonds and Charlie Herbst -- have been assigned to "walk the beat" in the city's northeast and southeast sections. One is black, the other is white.

These officers are meeting with citizen groups, civic leaders and churches, and providing follow up investigation of crimes reported in the area. They also walk the beat in Marble City Heights, Red Star and others parts of eastern Cape Girardeau -- both north and south.

Part of the reason they are in these areas is at the direct request of residents who felt the police were ignoring them -- other than to come in and arrest someone. Police Chief Howard "Butch" Boyd wants these officers to become "problem-solvers" for the neighborhood.

We appeal to the neighborhoods -- and city as a whole -- to give these officers and the program a chance to make a difference. If they are to become a true resource, it's important these officers learn the neighborhoods and the people. They can help open the lines of communications between police and residents, between whites and blacks.

Right now, the officers are focusing on Indian Park -- one of the most highly-used parks in the city. Chief Boyd has directed the officers to "hammer hard on criminal activity in the park and make the park safe for families to take their children." This park has been plagued by fights and drug deals.

We've seen what's happened in other communities where crime has spiraled out of control.

In Sikeston, the Standard-Democrat writes strong words about its crime problem. The newspaper points out that the problem can't be left to law enforcement to solve -- it's everyone's problem.

"...We have a contempt for authority in some quarters, there is a tragic lack of family units, primarily without male role models and there remains generational poverty," writes the Sikeston newspaper. "When combined, as we have in Sikeston, the formula for tragedy exists.

"The conservative solution is stricter law enforcement and matching force with force. There is a growing mood to bring radical solutions to a problem far too complex for us to handle. Perhaps for too long we've ignored the problem because it didn't occur at our front door. But those times are long gone -- this is your problem and mine."

These are words worth contemplating here as well.

Cape Girardeau's community policing program is a good start at building better relations between law enforcement and the community. But we cannot expect law enforcement to "solve" all our crime problems. It's something that we all have a stake in -- black and white, rich and poor. Let us unite against crime.