Violent America.

One in five homicides occurs in families. More than I million Americans are in jail or prison. There are more gun dealers in the United States than gas stations. America is the violence capital of the industrialized world it is our problem, but what can any one of us do to solve it?

She was an attractive, intelligent woman, mid-40s, good job, nice new rehabbed condominium in a changing-for-the-better big-city neighborhood. She had lots of friends and a loving family. On a crisp autumn evening, she sat quietly on the train home from work turning over the day's events and planning what she was going to have for dinner. She debated about whether to stop at the grocery store but decided she had enough food. It was 6 pm.--time for a workout before dinner.

As she neared her building, a young man approached and passed. Two seconds later he was grabbing at the purse slung around her right shoulder. She was yanked around and then pushed face-down to the ground. She cried out, "Please don't hurt me!" She felt an excruciating stinging in her back. Her attacker fled down the street. It took her a moment to realize that she had been stabbed. She struggled to stand and began yelling for help as she made her way to the front door of her building. She was getting weaker. She pressed the first buzzer then the second, then all the buzzers. She could not speak any more. She was found minutes later by a neighbor lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to her condominium. This woman survived her violent attack but not without physical and mental scars. She had a severed spleen and colon and a punctured and collapsed lung. She was in the hospital for a month. Her parents sold her condo for her and she moved to the suburbs where she feels safer. She his a hard time trusting people.

A few years earlier, another woman, after years of beatings and verbal abuse from her husband, finally chose to flee with their daughter and find safety. She left the East Coast suburb where she had spent her entire life and sought refuge at an urban shelter for battered women in a city 1,000 miles away from her husband. She feels safer now, but she doesn't trust people.

Safety, it seems, is relative in America's violent culture, and trust is a scarce commodity. No one can escape the violence in our society. Although we tend to view strangers with more suspicion, most violence occurs between people who know each other. Everyone becomes the "other" in our crime-laden, individualistic society, and the other is the enemy. How can Christians, including U.S. Catholic readers, adhere to the biblical admonition to welcome the stranger, when the stranger is likely to blow their heads off?

Of course, statistically this last statement isn't true--danger doesn't lurk around every corner. Yet who can deny that some corners are more dangerous than others, and corners of the world we thought would be safe--our quiet neighborhoods, our secluded suburbs, our churches, our homes--are within the ugly reach of violence. Regardless of race, creed, color, or natural origin--who we are or where we live--we are all directly and indirectly affected by violent America.

When I look at my own life, I say, "Thank God, I have never been assaulted or beaten or abused." Yet the two women I described above are people I know. And a guy from my high school--we sat together in algebra--was murdered by serial killer John Wayne Gacy. And the sleepy Chicago suburb where I grew up, Addison, Illinois, where nothing much seemed to happen, is now the scene of one of last year's most gruesome crimes--the murder of a pregnant woman for the sake of the baby she was carrying, who was cut out of her womb after she was shot in the head. It is all so awful and overwhelming and numbing.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States is now the most violent nation in the industrialized world. More than 20,000 homicides are committed each year, and in 1993 there were 7,864 hate crimes identified. The Children's Defense Fund reports that in the U.S. 100,000 children carry guns to schools, 700,000 carry knives, and 160,000 students skip school every day for fear of violence.

Homes are the most violent places in America: more than 50 percent of the women murdered are killed by partners or ex-partners, and 2.7 million children are reported to be victims of neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, or emotional maltreatment.

For the average, law-abiding citizen, the situations that give rise to violence seem far removed. It's other neighborhoods that have gangs and drive-by shootings. It's other families who physically and verbally abuse their children, beat their spouses, or abuse drugs and alcohol. It's other people who are filled with bigotry and hate and intolerance.

But, then again, most Americans have been or know someone who was the victim of a violent crime. And on any given week, many Americans, including 17 percent of U.S. Catholic readers surveyed, fear for their safety at least once.

No easy answers

The statistics are frightening, and most Americans are begging for solutions. Some Americans, though very few U.S. Catholic readers, believe that getting tough on crime, increasing the use of the death penalty, allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons, stricter sentencing, and drastically cutting welfare will solve the problem of violence.

Others, both in and out of our readership, believe that gun control, substance-abuse prevention, stronger family and community ties, improved education, and more jobs would help reduce violence in our society. Eighty-one percent of U.S. Catholic readers believe that the government should give more attention to preventing crime than building more prisons.

U.S. Catholic reader Carolyn Torrance of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania believes the solution lies in working for "economic, racial, gender, and class justice and teaching all persons that they have a right and a responsibility to contribute to the work and arts of a community."

Several other readers, including Sister Mary Beatty of Flint, Michigan and Donna Acquaviva and Robert Naylor of Gerrardstown, West Virginia, suggest supporting and participating in peace-and-justice organizations. Reader Rosemary Luckett of Manassas Virginia stands up to prejudice and bigotry when she encounters it and "adopts conservation and recycling activities to lessen the violence done to the earth."

Overall, readers, like many Americans, believe it is important to vote their consciences and try not to get sucked into accepting the unrealistic either-or solutions politicians offer them (it's either up to individuals to solve the country's problem, or it's up to the government).

But when it comes to systemic, comprehensive strategies, no one is sure of what to do. Because there is no one cause for the violence in America, there is no one solution.

Bad connections

One culprit that's become the target of a lot of the blame for violence is the media. Ninety percent of U.S. CATHOLIC readers believe that television, movies, and music lyrics encourage children to be more violent. When I was a kid, we sat around as a family and played educational games put out by World Book Encyclopedia. Now kids I know spend hours by themselves playing Doom--a high-tech, sci-fi, 007-type of shoot-'em-up game and other simulated warfare games on their computers. I haven't noticed behavior that could be termed violent among these children, but studies show that violent images desensitize viewers and increase their aggression.

I don't see my own behavior as particularly violent, yet there was a time when, after taking a two-year hiatus from TV, I found all of its kicking, punching, and killing very disturbing. Now 12 years later, I watch the explosive, horrific violence in films like "True Romance" and "Pulp Fiction" and barely flinch. My immune buildup worries me.

Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith of Harvard School of Public Health says in her book Deadly Consequences (HarperCollins, 1991, written with Michael Weissman) that "in the media world, brutality is portrayed as ordinary and amusing," and its excessive depiction leads to overestimating the amount of violence in the real world. Prothrow-Stith refers to this as the "mean-world syndrome," which "fills a person with feelings of danger, mistrust, intolerance, gloom, and hopelessness."

More and more children are spending their evenings alone playing Mortal Kombat, while seniors are locked up in their homes terrified to step outside. And the "busyness syndrome" among working Americans leaves them with little time for anyone. The more people are disconnected from the community, the more frightened and fearful they become of their neighbors.

Americans are losing their ability to relate to one another--let alone trust one another. In everything we do, we are encouraged to avoid or dispense with human contact--cash stations, computer home shopping, voice mail. At my grocery store, a computer voice tells me the price of an item as it is scanned by the cashier. It announces the total, the amount tendered, and the change due. In an emotionless tone it says, "Thank you" and "Have a nice day," while the cashier hands me my change and receipt. On more than one occasion, unless I initiated conversation, the cashier has not said a word to me. He or she was simply at the service of the computer-providing it with human hands when necessary.

It is so much easier to be indifferent and uncaring when we reduce human beings to disembodied voices or, worse yet, abstractions. Violence thrives on abstraction. That was the evil genius of Nazism. Jews were isolated and restricted from any interaction with other citizens. Once people lost sight of who individual Jews were, the collective Jews could become the "they" who stood at the root of all social and economic problems; soon it started to make sense to "dispose" of them.

The Red-baiting of the McCarthy era brought with it, on a smaller scale, a similar kind of abstraction, and this is the kind of abstraction that we see in our current political debates. "Liberal" and "conservative" have become hate-filled, divisive labels, as have "prolife" and "prochoice" and "white male" and "welfare mother."

What you can do

This type of cynicism and labeling one of the leading preventable uses of violence. There are others. Despite the overwhelming nature of the problem and while we are in need of grave social changes, each person can do something to stop the violence in our society. It begins in little ways. It begins with asking ourselves such questions as:

Do I use derogatory, degrading, or offensive terms when describing others? Do I insist on having my own way and force or intimidate others into complying? Do I allow myself to express my anger in irrational ways? Do I use vulgar or abusive language? Do I prejudge people? Do I fear people who are different from me? Am I cynical and suspicious? Do I distance myself from others? Do I hold grudges? Do I allow injustices to be done to me or others? Do I fall to stand up for myself? Do I abuse myself through addiction?

In a commencement address last year, Milwaukee's Archbishop Rembert Weakland shared this advice to students: "Watch the tendency toward excessive self-centeredness. Violence begins when the lives of others have no longer any value but become cheap and expendable. Watch anger. The trick one must learn is to turn valid anger into true passionate concern that is under rational control."

U.S. Catholic reader Cathy Hagen of Blountstown, Florida says that the best way to curb violence in one's personal life is "to strive to act in love and not react in anger. Keep asking yourself, `What would Jesus do?'" Reader Frank Zolvinski of Gary, Indiana recommends "taking stock of one's life and one's flash points."

These are simple measures, but they can make a difference. After that, we must get to know our neighbors, as Mr. Rogers has told us time and again. Ask any law-enforcement officer and he or she will tell you that community awareness and involvement is essential in curbing crime. Neighborhood-watch programs and community policing are far more successful in preventing crime than hiring more cops or building more prisons. "The gangs don't go away," says lan Jipp, a Chicago resident who staged a candlelight march in his North Side community after being mugged, "but they'll move on if they know they're being watched."

Communities are beginning to discover that gangs work on the divide-and-conquer principle. The more united a neighborhood is, the less chance gangs have of taking over. "I knew the march was a success," says Jipp, "when I went out to breakfast the next morning and saw neighbors talking who had never talked to one another before. People in this diverse neighborhood learned more about who they could trust and who they could go to for help."

Gang activity, which has been a longtime problem in inner cities, is now infiltrating suburban areas around the country at a rapid pace. Sam Rivera, a seasoned security guard, has witnessed an increase in violence and gang activity in his South Chicago community. "They use Mafia tactics now-threatening to harm the family members of anyone who tries to leave or inform on the gang."

Rivera, who refuses to wear a gun on his job, has a long list of what the average person can do to reduce violence-first on that list is community involvement. "When I was a teenager, I used to get in fights, hang around, and act like a punk," he says, "but then I saw a lot of bad things going down in the neighborhood. Me and my buddies decided to do something about it."

They formed a community group that sponsored dances and neighborhood cleanups and worked with the local priests, politicians, and police to get youth involved in positive projects.

Ultimately, though, for Rivera, the key is "to train your mind to ignore people's hostility." Weakland offers similar advice: "The temptation to answer in kind, especially when it comes to verbal abuse, is strong. But I have to say constantly to myself that verbal abuse is not conquered by more abuse."

U.S. Catholic reader Dotty Nittler of Denver, Colorado simply tries "talking softly to the angry person," and William Cofell of St. Joseph, Minnesota attempts to remain calm and keep communication open, while still respecting people's anger.

U.S. Catholic reader Mary Lennard of Cincinnati, Ohio compares controlling her anger to whitewater rafting: "If you control the raft to go faster or slower than the river, you stay afloat. However, by letting the river carry you along, the water will dash the raft against the rocks."

Teach your children well

Naturally the best way to counter violence is to start with our children--teaching kids right from wrong, bringing them to church, getting them involved in worthwhile activities--before they have learned the lessons of violence. Everyone agrees on this point, which makes local and federal cutbacks directed at educational and violence-prevention programs all the more incomprehensible.

Children need alternatives to the apathy and violence of the streets. As Kevin Clarke writes in "How violence is robbing our children" in the November/December issue of Salt of the Earth magazine, "It's an idea as old as 'idle hands make the devil's work,' but it's a notion repeated time and time again by people who work with young people: if teens have nothing better to do, they will find ways to get into trouble."

With school violence on the rise (a 38 percent increase in the past five years, according to the National League of Cities), working to keep children out of trouble makes sense, but experts say we must be careful not to blame violence on "kids today." In a 1994 article in Parade, Children's Defense Fund director Marian Wright Edelman notes that:

While we decry rising youth violence,

drug use, and antisocial behavior,

the plain truth is that we

adults have preached moral and

family values we have not practiced

consistently in our homes,

religious congregations, communities,

and national life.

It is adults who have financed, produced,

and performed in the movies,

TV shows, and media that have

made violence ubiquitous in our

culture. It is adults who manufacture,

market, and make available

guns to anybody who wants one,

including our children. It is adults

who have taught that hate, racial

and gender intolerance, greed, and

selfishness are family values.

Children need role models--not only national celebrities but local heroes. They need to see the adults in their lives taking action against violence. My father became a legend in our neighborhood for breaking up a rumble between a group of tough guys from the town's rival high schools--Addison Trail and Driscoll Catholic. He walked up to the gang of 20 or so kids, saw one kid he knew, and said, "Come on, you don't want to fight. You'll give Catholics a bad name." Enticing them with a barbecue in our backyard, he got half the crowd to follow him, leaving the rest of the group with no one to fight.

It was a small victory, but it had a positive influence on a lot of young people, including his children. Years later, my sister was driving down a city street with two young teenage boys in her car when they were horrified to see on the opposite side of the street another teenage boy being beaten by 12 teenagers on bikes. In a split second she made the decision to turn her car around and drive up into the middle of the fray with lights flashing and horn honking. The kids in the car thought she was nuts. "What are you doing!" they yelled, "This is not our problem. Don't get involved!"

Later, when the attackers scrambled away and she made sure the beaten boy was okay, she explained to her young charges that, in fact, it was their problem: "It would have been wrong for us not to help."

I'm not recommending such dramatic or risky intervention for everyone, but the point is: we must do something, and our children have to witness our concern and action.

In their pastoral letter "Confronting a Culture of Violence," the U.S. Catholic bishops conclude:

Above all, we must come to understand

that violence is unacceptable.

We must learn the lesson of

Pope Paul VI, 'If you want peace,

work for justice.'... Society cannot

tolerate an ethic which uses violence

to make a point, settle grievances,

or get what we want. But the

path to a more peaceful future is

found in a rediscovery of personal

responsibility, respect for human

life and human dignity, and a recommitment 

to social justice.

Hard-earned hope

Most U.S. Catholic readers are involved in or financially support violence-prevention programs. There are numerous programs in parishes and dioceses and communities across the country that deal with violence in our communities. Advocacy groups lobby for gun control, funding for violence-prevention programs, and neighborhood cop-on-the-beat programs. Youth groups create educational and recreational alternatives to gang involvement.

The most effective programs try to get at the root causes of violence by:

* repairing broken communities;

* compensating for the missing male presence in many children's' lives;

* dealing with the anger, sense of powerlessness, and lack of self-esteem that lead to addiction, physical abuse, or violent crime;

* providing children with real opportunities so that they will know they have a future;

* promoting responsible TV viewing and helping parents develop nonviolent skills in their children;

* assisting children in acquiring empathy, impulse control, and problem solving;

* teaching that racism, sexism, and abusive behavior are always wrong;

* counseling the witnesses or victims of abuse and violence so that the cycle of violence will not continue.

These nationwide efforts serve as beacons of hope in what often seems like an unstoppable wave of brutality engulfing our world. And hope is the best antidote of all to violence. Sixty percent of U.S. Catholic readers surveyed even go so far as to state that it is possible for us to create a nonviolent world. But it is an arduous, exhausting task, and often it is hard not to lose heart.

That is the time many people resort to prayer--prayer not only for the safety of loved ones and neighbors but for the strength not to be overcome with grief and despair. Many U.S. Catholic readers recommend meditating on the Prayer of St. Francis as a way to curb their own violent behavior or renew their sense of hope for an end to the violence in our society. "Make me a channel of your peace"--it is such a simple request.

As I write these words, I have just learned that the son of family friends was shot and killed during an attempted carjacking. He was 21, a college senior studying English literature. He volunteered his time to serve as a coach, tutor, and mentor to inner-city, at-risk kids. He was doing all the right things to help stem the tide of violence, but he was swallowed up nevertheless. His parents, I fear, are going to have a tough time trusting people.

But that isn't the end of the story. Violence and death never have the last word--not for Christians, nor any people of God. I'll let this young man, Ethan Kane, have the last word--the last line of one of his poems: "I lie on my back and dream of the day/Enemies place their arms on the ground."

Reader, Survey Responses

I react to violent situations in the following ways:

Violence is just one of many reactions. The solution is to teach people the difference between reacting to any situation according to how they feel and responding according to how they believe. Racism and sexism are examples of the belief in "us against them." The solution is to teach what it means to say that every person is made in the image and likeness of God.

John Brennan 

Newburgh, N.Y.

Seek help and safety, pray for God's intervention, and attempt to stop violence with words.

Gregory N. Kuhn

Cambridge, Minn.

With fear, anger, and frustration.

Maureen R. Gervais

Lowell, Mass.

I feel a sense of helplessness--I just freeze and do nothing. Only later do I imagine how I could have reacted.

Mary K. Okapal

Findlay, Ohio 

I have helped decrease violence by:

Teaching my students conflict management.

Janice Saggio

Colis, Ohio

Volunteering my home as a safe home for victims of domestic violence.

Scott Sweeney

Lewistown, Mont.

Teaching my children values of right and wrong and the law.

Mary Blake

Menominee, Mich

Setting an example to family, friends, and acquaintances.

G. B. Weber

Wasilla, Alaska

I have tried to support legislators and other public officials who have tried to decrease violence in what I believe is a safe and sane manner and who have not gone along with the crowd in support of more prisons and longer or mandatory sentences, which do not do any good except further harden and educate prisoners in more violence.

Cecil R. White

Menlo Park, Calif.

Not allowing my children to watch violent cartoons. I donate to causes that assist women and children who are victims of violence.

Name withheld

Missoula, Mont.

Not owning a gun.

Debby Filla

Twinsburg, Ohio 

By my personal example in difficult situations and by my preaching on this subject.

Father William L. Travers

Fairfield, Conn.

Suggesting to my children and grandchildren that a violent reaction usually accomplishes nothing.

Aggie Kunzman

Alliance, Nebr.

If I catch a child reacting violently, I do the I following:

Have them think about how the other person felt when they used violence on them and what their alternatives are. Realistically, they are going to feel this way again, but it is never okay to hit or degrade someone else.

Debby DelCiello

Janesville, Wis.

I would try to reason with them and explain the uselessness of violence.

Name withheld

Springfield, Mass.

As an elementary school teacher, I would ask him or her how Jesus would have acted in such a situation and also why he or she is reacting in a violent way. Finally, I would try to teach the child strategies that are useful in resolving conflict peacefully.

J. Thompson

Fullerton, Calif.

Have them take some time out.

Name withheld

Cambridge, Minn.

Help them identify their feelings, their needs, and the resources available to them that will result in a successful conclusion.

Charlotte Weisenhorn

Des Moines, Iowa 

The things my faith has taught me about violence are:

The use of violence is never acceptable except in defense of yourself or another. If everyone accepted this, violence would disappear because the first punch would never be thrown, shot fired, or bomb dropped.

Peter Andre

Clearwater, Fla.

God is bigger than the violence in our world. We may not understand why or the psychological motivations behind violent acts, but God is in control of our lives.

Name withheld

Manitowoc, Wis.

I must become a peacemaker in my sphere of influence. I must work to stop the injustices that may lead to violence in others.

Candace Wegerson

Duluth, Minn.

I express myself more than I used to.

7% agree 88% disagree 5% other

Sexist and racist jokes constitute violence.

60% agree 31% disagree 9% other

I consider swearing at someone to be a violent act.

72% agree 22% disagree 6% other

Not much if you are talking about I would call the police if I witnessed domestic abuse or criminal violence in my neighborhood.

98% agree 1% disagree 1% other

I have moved because of violence where I lived.

12% agree 84% disagree 4% other

Men are more likely than women to react violently in a stressful or confrontational situation.

79% agree 15% disagree 6% other

RELATED ARTICLE: Traditional values aren't all good

"Violence is habit forming, and America is addicted," says Julian Bond, the narrator in the 1995 HBO special "Violence: An American Tradition." America has carried violent traditions through the centuries. What we now call the cycle of violence started when Columbus landed on America's shores and continued through the violent subjugation of Native Americans, slavery, the guntoting psychopathic outlaws of the Wild West, the Civil War, gangsters, the Ku Klux Klan, lynchings, race riots, drug dealers, gangbangers, grisly tabloid journalism, an all-time high in domestic abuse. "Violence is learned," says Bond. "It can be unlearned. But that can't happen until America deals with the roots of its violence."

The Catholic Church has a violent past that must be dealt with as well, but, as the U.S. Catholic bishops point out in their pastoral letter "Confronting a Culture of Violence," Catholic tradition offers much wisdom in finding ways to end the cycle of violence:

What we believe, where we are, and how we live out our faith can make a great

difference in the struggle against violence. We see the loss of lives. We serve

the victims. We feel the fear. We must confront this growing culture of

violence with a commitment to life, a vision of hope, and a call to action. Our

assets in this challenge include:

* the example and teaching of Christ,

* the biblical values of respect for life, peace, justice, and community,

* our teaching on human life and human dignity, on right and wrong, on family and work, on justice and peace, on rights and responsibilities,

* our tradition of prayer, sacraments, and contemplation which can lead to a disarmament of the heart, * a commitment to marriage and family life, to support responsible parenthood and to help parents teach their children the values to live full lives;

* a presence in most neighborhoods--our parishes and schools, hospitals and social services are sources of life and hope in places of violence and fear;

* an ethical framework which calls us to practice and promote virtue, responsibility, forgiveness, generosity, concern for others, social justice, and economic fairness;

* a capacity for advocacy that cuts across the false choices in national debate-jails or jobs, personal or social responsibility, better values or better policies;

* a consistent ethnic of life which remains the surest foundation of our life together.

RELATED ARTICLE: Resources

Most of the statistics found in this article came from the following sources that you may find useful:

Confronting a Culture of Violence. A Catholic Framework for Action, a pastoral message of the U.S. Catholic bishops, 1994; United States Catholic Conference, 3211 Fourth Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20017; telephone: 1-800-23S-USCC.

National Catholic Youth Initiative to Stand Against Violence Resource Manual developed by the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, Inc., 199S; 3700-A Oakview Terrace, NE, Washington, D.C. 20017-2591; telephone: [phone].

Various resources for parishes and communities from Children's Defense Fund Publications, 25 E Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20001; telephone: [phone].

Community Resource Guide from the National Campaign to Reduce Youth Violence, 901 E Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20004-2037; telephone: [phone].

These publications list hundreds of groups and programs that work toward promoting peace and preventing violence. priests, nuns, and the church. Some of the actions of nuns were nothing less than abominable toward children. I never remember hearing a priest address the subject of violence against wives and children or talk about prejudice.

Name withheld

Winfield, W. Va.

Television, movies, and music lyrics encourage children to be more violent.

90% agree

6% disagree

4% other

That it is wrong to grow angry with our neighbor, wrong to raise a hand against them, wrong to judge them, and wrong to kill them.

Michael Kleshock

Cincinnati, Ohio

Violence does not solve problems. Peacemakers are blessed, they shall be called children of God.

Sister Marie Anatrella

Brooklyn, N.Y.

I try to understand the motivation of some people creating violent acts such as gangs, but it is hard because it all seems so senseless.

Betty Annecharico

Pacific Palisades, Calif,

If violence were diminished or eliminated, my life would be different in the following ways:

I would feel freer to walk through any neighborhood, but most important, I would be freer to teach my students without the distractions caused by the effects of violence in their lives.

Germaine R. Wieman

Houston, Tex

I wouldn't worry about my daughter working at night. I would feel free to offer help to strangers without wondering if it was a setup. I would waste less energy on worrying.

Name withheld

Neenah, Wis.

There would be less stress; it would be easier to raise a family; and life would be more enjoyable.

Ernie Gawili

El Paso, Tex.

I would still have my mother who was killed violently.

Charlene Sanders

Hereford, Tex.

I would be less uneasy in certain locations and in certain situations.

Donald L. Perry

Buffalo, N.Y.

I'd pray differently in Mass, and I'd see more happy faces around me.

Sister Helen Borszich

St. Francis Mission, S.D.

I feel bad for the little ones who have to be so strictly cautioned not to talk to strangers. We walk six blocks to church every day and usually meet children who are on their way to school in the opposite direction. These children rarely meet our eyes or say good morning. I have to think it's because of the warnings they have received.

Name withheld

Appleton, Wis.

Since I work as a news reporter and producer, I'd probably be unemployed.

Michael Voris

Farmington Hills, Mich.

Children and women would suffer less abuse. The general public would be more trusting.

Name withheld

Bettendorf, Iowa 

I believe the most serious source of violent behavior is:

17% availability

weapons.

12% substance

abuse.

3% racism and

other forms of

intolerance.

30% fragmented

families and lack

of role models.

1% government

budget cuts

affecting the poor.

1% insufficient law

enforcement.

5% boredom from

poverty and lack

of opportunities.

20% loss of values

and community

support.

2% child abuse.

9% other

The majority of my time would be spent on the teaching process versus conflict resolution.

Ken Mohr

St. Louis, Mo.

My children would grow up in a better world. I worry every day that they could be victims of violence.

Deborah Mittelman

Peachtree City, Ga.

I'd be a more outgoing person.

Albin Kuzminski

Clinton, Mich.

To protect myself from violence, I:

48% don't walk

alone at

night.

3% have taken a

self-defense

class.

17% installed tighter

security in my

home.

4% carry pepper

spray or mace.

1% carry a knife or

other weapon.

3% keep a gun in

my home.

24% other

The best way to curb violence in one's personal life is:

To be accountable for my own behavior, limit violent TV programs and movies, encourage children to participate in sports and vent their energies, and learn patience.

Margaret Ransone

New Orleans, La.

Live the gospels.

A. Keller

Evergreen Park, Ill. Be smart, be cautious and aware, live peacefully, and pray for peace and for our brothers and sisters.

Karen Doughan

Green Bay, Wis.

Limiting exposure to excessive media coverage of violence.

Steve Koenig

Loveland, Colo.

Accept and learn that violence solves nothing.

Sandy Bahe

Elburn, Ill.

Discuss violence with family nd friends, especially children and how it permeates our lives. Don't allow put-downs, severe criticism, offensive jokes, or mean-spirited behavior in the family.

Connie Meixner

Oakdale, Minn.

Take a look at the life of Saint Francis of Assisi.

Bruce Snowden

Bronx, N.Y.

. . . and in society is:

Gun control. A comprehensive look at what to do about urban poverty. A consensus that terrorism and antigovernment extremism are not noble. I have America Online and people in there praise Tim McVeigh, Randy Weaver, and David Koresh--can you believe it?

Thomas Farrell 

Santa Clara, Calif.

Community-based policing and strong neighborhood-watch programs.

Dave Heney

Arcadia, Calif.

Stronger families and belief in the teachings of Christ. A more healthy respect for other people's lives and their value to each of us.

Richard F. Schieler

York, Pa.

To improve the lives of the poor and ensure good schools for their children and to see that social services are not eliminated, depriving those in need.

Mrs. George Beck 

Glenview, Ill.

Catholics should practice Jesus' command to turn the other cheek, even when their personal safety is jeopardized.

24% agree

66% disagree

10% other

I am often afraid of strangers.

27% agree

68% disagree

5% other

During any given week, I fear for my safety at least once.

17% agree

80% disagree

3% other

I often pray that my loved ones will not become victims of violence.

61% agree

32% disagree

7% other

I don't think I could forgive someone who committed a violent act against me or a loved one.

27% agree

56% disagree

17% other

Our government should give more attention to preventing crime than building more prisons.

81% agree

11% disagree

8% other

Prisons make people more violent, not less.

66% agree

19% disagree

15% other

I think measures such as mandatory sentencing requirements and "three strikes" policies will deter people from committing crimes.

36% agree

54% disagree

10% other

Capital punishment is a justifiable form of violence.

24% agree

69% disagree

7% other

Our country's tradition of using military force to solve international problems has sent a message to Americans that violence is an acceptable response to confrontation.

41% agree

52% disagree

7% other

Violence has gone too far in our society for grassroots organizations to really help.

10% agree

86% disagree

4% other

Do something to eliminate the causes of enmity and violence. Promote justice and strive to overcome all dehumanizing factors existing in our culture. It is an impossible task, but still a valid objective to work for.

Father Donald Lund, C.S.V.

Bourbonnais, Ill.

Less sex and violence on TV. More family planning at the teenage level so babies brought into this world are wanted and brought into a great family atmosphere.

Name withheld

Janesville, Wis.

A person who has done a lot to make the world less violent is: Martin Luther King, Jr. Mahatma Gandhi Nelson Mandela Jimmy Carter Pope John Paul II Billy Graham Jesus Mother Teresa Dorothy Day Thomas Merton Cardinal Joseph Bernardin Father Daniel Berrigan Oscar Romero Bishop Thomas Gumbleton My mother

General comments

Children learn and imitate what. they see. Fractured families and neighborhoods invariably produce fractured people. Future violent people can be derailed from that path in early youth only by being truly loved by gentle people.

Teresa Matthews

Harrison, Ark.

The question on the military concerns me. I considered my 25-year military career a commitment to try to make the world a safer place. The most peaceful people I know are military; we're the ones that must face the violence our elected representatives choose.

Mark C. Miller

Indianapolis, Ind.

The prison system has diluted its efficiency since it has attempted to become a correctional institution. Prisons can only be penal facilities. Meting out penalties, as prescribed by law, is what they've always done best.

Sam Munafo

Philadelphia, Pa.

It is possible for us to create a nonviolent world.

60% agree

23% disagree

17% other

Give people the tools to choose alternatives to violence and this world will be a better place for all. Put those who sell guns to kids out of business. Try to educate adults and children about the abuse of drugs and alcohol.

George F. Reczek

Roundup, Mont.

Having seen the effects of violence in my own life, I really feel strongly that families are too busy to teach proper morals and ethics, and kids have too much free time. Kathy Carleton Olmsted, Ohio

Violence is one of the most disturbing aspects of our society. It destroys trust, which is the foundation of all healthy relationships and communities. We must all strive to eliminate this disease which afflicts our country and world.

Michele Jack

Pasadena, Calif.