Crime problem continues in West Bank neighborhood

BY BURT BERLOWE

In January of 2004, I wrote an article about the question whether there were Somali gangs in town, specifically the West Bank area. The impetus for that piece came from reports of violent and criminal acts committed by groups of Somali youth in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. There were conflicting opinions about the extent of the problem and whether those groups constituted “gangs,” as they are traditionally defined. But there was agreement on the seriousness of this issue among law enforcement officers and the Somali community, with the blame laid primarily on the lack of constructive activities for the youth and broken family structures.

Two years later, the “gangs”—or whatever you call them—haven’t gone away and neither has the dilemma of what to do about them.
Officer Sherry Appleton, a member of the Midwatch police unit that patrols Cedar-Riverside and other first precinct neighborhoods from 5:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. every night, acknowledges that “there are many problems with Somali gang activity” on the West Bank. “Some of it is petty nuisance activity. But there also been stabbings and shootings. We just happen upon a lot of those incidents because people are not calling 911 when they come upon trouble or they call it and don’t stay around to give information.” She urges residents to be more proactive and cooperative in reporting crimes.

Much of the criminal activity in Cedar-Riverside centers around its bars—especially Palmers’ and the Viking. On a recent Saturday afternoon, I popped into Palmers’ which sits on Cedar Avenue in the shadow of the large high rises that house most of the community’s immigrant population. I couldn’t have anticipated what I would find.

Doug Anderson was seated on a stool at the bar finishing a drink, and gazing out from behind a thick white beard. Anderson has a lot of history on the West Bank. He was a political revolutionary during the turbulent 1960s, one of the organizers of a “new American city” movement. After a period away from the neighborhood, he has been back for 15 years, and now lives in an apartment above the Viking Bar. He has one other less desirable distinction. He has been a recent victim of a Somali gang.

Anderson shifts his glance my way and tells how it happened. “One night a few weeks ago I was by the outside door of my apartment about to go in when I was attacked by three black youths and knocked out. That’s the first time that’s ever happened to me. They were wearing hoods so I couldn’t identify them. But someone later told me they were Somali youth. Now, every time I’m out and about I’m careful. I think they know who I am.”

Marty Johnson, a Viking bar employee and long time West Bank resident happened to be in Palmers that day. In contrast to Anderson, he is clean-cut with long straight blonde hair falling to his shoulders. Ironically, he was the victim of an assault by a Somali youth gang that was mentioned in the 2004 Pulse article. He told that story in more detail. “I was walking home from work at the bar at 2 a.m, when I was approached by group of three Somali youths. They asked if I had any money. I told them I had spent it all at the bar. They punched me in the head twice. I began to run but they caught up to me, knocked me down and kicked me in the face. Some people came by and pulled them off of me. I recognized their language as Somali. I had a couple of shiners and my face looked like an eggplant.”

During his hours at the Viking, Johnson has seen groups of African youth jump out of cars, grab money out of people’s pockets, then go back to their automobiles to talk to one another. He has followed them through parking lots, where they tend to hang around and has smelled Khat (a Somali narcotic drug) on their lips.

Johnson is careful not to stereotype all of these perpetrators as Somali gangs. “There are groups of Somalis who hang out together. But they are not necessarily gangs. And you can’t always assume that the troublemakers are Somalis. Sometimes it’s just Africans who drank too much, but are not gangs.
Tofiq Hassam, an Ethiopian, seated on a corner bar stool, lives in the Seward neighborhood and has been in the U.S .about seven years. Last year, he claims, he was hit on the head by a group of Somali youth near the Riverside Café. He didn’t call the police for fear of losing his job at Mystic Lake Casino. He blames the gang activity on the fact there is “too much democracy, too many rights” in the U.S., and that some of the immigrants take advantage of it.
Away from the bars and out in the neighborhood, there is a lingering concern about the issue of dysfunctional Somali youth.

Saeed Fahia is executive director of the Confederation of Somali Communities (CSN) of Minnesota, located in the Coyle Center on the west edge of Cedar-Riverside. CSN has been working on the youth gang problem for the last several years with only modest success. “There are some gang wanna-bes among the Somali youth,” Fahia says. “Some of them may actually have an identifying name. Not all of them are committing crimes. Some are just disrespectful of their elders. Sometimes they get into fights or steal something.”

Fahia talks about the crux of the problem. “They ( the youths) hang around. They’re bored. They’re not in school or they don’t have jobs. Many of them come here from other communities, but some are from our neighborhood. It’s mostly young men 18 and under. Some are from large families like 18 in one household and they can’t cope with that so they become delinquent.”

CSN has been working with the Coyle Center , the police and local government to offer various programs designed to keep youth out of trouble. And, according to Fahia, there have been success stories—young people who have turned their lives around, gone on to finish school, get jobs, etc. But, he adds, the problem is about the same as it was two years ago. “Much more needs to be done. We need more funding for our programs. We need a special space for youth.”