With a string of violent attacks perpetrated by youth as young as 12 years old, the Executive Director of Inner City Youth Alive (ICYA) shares his thoughts on how best to address the situation.
Kent Dueck started ICYA 38 years ago in the heart of Winnipeg. The staff and volunteers have worked with youth who come from broken homes and trauma as well as some teens who belong to a gang.
This year in particular, Winnipeg has seen a rise in teenage-related crimes, which has increased 42 per cent in the last five years.
"If somebody has a crime committed against them, that's part of their trauma," says Dueck. "That has a multiplying effect. It can create a situation where there is a heightened level of hypervigilance in a community. It''s very concerning."
ICYA has a relational approach to providing a safe place for teenagers to come while being aware and in prevention mode at their drop-in.
Dueck shares that 10 years ago the province of Manitoba had 230 spots to contain violent youth. Now, the province has only 80 spots even though the violent crimes have increased.
"We're heartbroken because during COVID there were 43 murders in a year and a half span within the community. We were directly involved in 41 of those, we were doing the funeral, and working with the family. I remember sitting in a funeral for a 14-year-old girl who had been brutally stabbed by another teen. I was thinking about all those broken kids and how this is our work for the next 10 years, to bring healing here. It's incredibly sad."
ICYA has been in contact with the police, including the chief of police in Winnipeg, to be united on how best to approach this issue. It is also hard to show proof of the lack of crimes that aren't committed because of ICYA's relationships, according to Dueck, although there was one particular event that did.
"We had a crazy incident awhile back," says Dueck. "A youth admitted to having robbed someone in the community with a weapon, and we also knew the person who was robbed. The person who was robbing kind of stopped halfway through the robbery, remembering what one of my staff had shared. We ended up having a mediation meeting and the two are now friends."
What can Believers Do to Help
A common saying Dueck shares is, "Violence is the sound that pain makes," eluding to the fact that many of these teenage suspects are in a lot of pain.
"We have everything needed for the challenges here. I believe God is a healer. He is in the business of healing our pain. Satan comes to steal and destroy. As people of faith, we can pray for people on the front line. We can pray for police and paramedics who are going from trauma to trauma. Prayer is critical."
For anyone interested in coming alongside the work of ICYA, whether through prayer, volunteering, or donations, can do so here.
"I implore believers to be active in bringing that kindness to the world around them," says Dueck. "We have so much to offer as people of faith."