BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – WHILE some youths in the twin-island Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis are bent on foolishly killing each other and committing other serious crimes, a group of past and current gang members from McKnight and Newtown are harmoniously engaged in productive activities and are crying out for the public’s assistance.
Friendly game between rivals
Information reaching this publication states that past and current gang members from the two communities had competed in a basketball match of friendly rivalry during the Third Annual Family Fun Day hosted by Minister Marcella Liburd at the Gardens Playfield in McKnight on Friday, April 22.
According to Kennedy Bennet, McKnight won the match and was awarded two trophies for Best Team and Best Player, compliments Rotary Club of Liamuiga.
He said that both teams were given cash awards donated by a number of prominent and concerned citizens in St. Kitts.
Bennet would like to use this opportunity to thank all those who contributed to the success of the friendly match, noting “thanks for joining with us as we promote healing and mending of broken relationships”.
Social stability and harmony
Over the past six months, Bennet has been instrumental in mobilising past and current gang members from the two communities to pursue a positive lifestyle that contributes to safety, social stability and harmony.
“Recently, at several organised gatherings, representatives of the gangs had exchanged thoughts with various business, community and church leaders about how, with the help and support of the community, they can become more productive and responsible individuals and parents,” Bennet said.
Bennet is appealing to the public to support this initiative, which is being undertaken to address and reduce the level of crime and violence in and around Basseterre and its suburbs.
“This effort,” he noted, “involves identifying members and leaders of the youth gangs that operate in the various communities and mobilising civic minded individuals and the churches to reach out to such individuals.”
Bennet and Analdo Bailey, who are employees of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, along with Pastor Matthew Hepburn of the Word of Life New Testament Church of God on Central Street, are the driving force behind this initiative.
In mid-February, these three individuals had greatly assisted a group of young men from McKnight in the beautification of their community by ridding it of unwanted graffiti.
The group was led by Chad Williams of Central Street, who is the proprietor of Magnum Pub on Fort Thomas Road. It is the same group of young men who were involved in the basketball match against their Newtown counterparts.
Williams had explained that they were painting the walls, specifically those with graffiti, and the lower part of lampposts in white so that vehicle drivers could see them during the night in the event of power outages in the area.
Youths need guidance and opportunities
Now that that project is completed, the McKnight group is channeling its energy in other directions – harmony with its Newtown counterpart and empowerment.
According to Williams, the two groups were involved in exchange visits of worship.
“We from McKnight were invited by our colleagues in Newtown to worship at the Hope Chapel Methodist Church in George Street and we reciprocated by inviting them to the New Testament Church of God on Central Street. We also went together to worship at the Wesley Methodist Church by College Street, and we intend to continue engaging not only in religious activities, but also games and other planned events to mend broken relationships and create harmony between our communities,” Williams said.
The young entrepreneur noted that many young people within his and other communities in St. Kitts are being neglected by their parents and this had led them to join gangs, which eventually caused them to be rejected by society.
“As youths we are the children of the Federation and its future leaders. However, because of circumstances beyond many young people’s control, they were either forced or influenced to lead a life that is not in keeping with societal norms.
“Adults are the parents of these young people, and I would therefore like to suggest that they stop rejecting them but open doors and give them the opportunity to change. Many of these young men are high school dropouts, but they have ideas…and some of these ideas are very good. These ideas include entrepreneurship for them to make better their lives but they need guidance, and this has to come from concerned adults.
“Adults daily preach that it takes a community to raise a child and not only a household, but what have the preachers of this traditional belief done to remedy the current situation? Too long the youths have been suffering from neglect; it is time for the adults and the community as a whole to share the responsibilities by guiding the youths in the right direction and not to leave them on their own, which will eventually result in them suffering the consequences of wrong decision-making,” Williams stressed.
He noted that people in the Federation are calling on the youths to change their ways of life and many of them are willing to do so…“and that is the path the youths of McKnight and Newtown are currently walking.
“All it takes is for one man to start making that change and others will follow. So, that is what we are doing. It is said that a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Therefore, we have taken the first step in change and we would like the cooperation of the powers that be and also members of the various communities in assisting and guiding us along the way,” Williams said.
Entrepreneurial plans
Williams is of the view that “what the mind can conceive, the body can achieve”.
He said that the youths in McKnight want to empower themselves as entrepreneurs and plans are on the front burner to achieve this quest.
“We plan to occupy a plot of land at the junction of Fort Thomas Road and Fiennes Avenue and cultivate it. Work has already started in the form of grass cutting and removal of debris, but there is more to be done before we start planting cash crops on a commercial basis.
“It is a small area but at least that will be a start for the youths to empower themselves. However, we are trying to achieve a larger plot of land on Central Street. This land was used for farming purposes by the Special Education Unit but it is now abandoned. Therefore, we would like to have it for the same purpose and we are seeking permission from the Ministry of Education to start working on it.
“Should we be successful, this means that the young men who are unemployed will be able to take care of their basic needs and some of their wants. This will prove not only to the McKnight community, but also the powers that be as well as other at-risk youths in the Federation, that change is inevitable, change from the life they once lived is good and change can earn them respect and support from all,” Williams emphasised.
Williams, on behalf of the McKnight and Newtown groups, commended and thanked a number of individuals for their efforts in bringing the two groups together and initiating behavioural change.
“I would like to thank all those who have so far contributed in words and deeds for the creation of change in the perception of the youths in McKnight, and also in bringing the two groups together to live in harmony.
“I would especially like to thank Kennedy Bennet, Analdo Bailey and Pastor Matthew Hepburn for all they have done and continue to do for the young men. I would also like to commend those young men who came forward in answer to the call for togetherness and change. I am calling on all adults to be parents in the true sense of the word and to show the youths that they love and care for them. Do not by encourage wrong doings; teach them what is right and, most importantly, teach and lead them by example.
“Remember, family is the foundational institution of human society and it is God who ordained that. Therefore, it is those within the family who set the precedence of the children’s actions and behaviour.
“Finally, I am echoing the call of the youths in McKnight and Newtown for assistance from the government and civil society in order to effect the change they desire by providing opportunities,” pleaded Williams.
