Fight crime by turning out for National Night Out

This editorial appears in the Aug. 3, 2009, Yakima Herald-Republic.

You don't have to convince Pedro Esteves Lopez that fighting crime isn't a top priority.

While pedaling his bicycle ice cream cart on a recent hot Saturday afternoon near Yakima's Milroy Park, the 62-year-old Esteves heard a loud bang and then felt a pain behind his calf. He had been hit by a stray bullet.

An ice cream vendor -- how more innocent of a victim can you get?

But bullets sometimes don't discriminate between a rival gang member and an innocent bystander like Esteves. And other times, they do. On the same day Esteves was wounded, an 18-year-old suffered a gunshot injury in another drive-by. But this one authorities say was gang-related.

And so it has gone this year -- more violence, more gang shootings, more innocent victims. It's time residents of the Yakima Valley take back their neighborhoods.

One of way of doing just that is to take part Tuesday in the 26th annual National Night Out, a crime and drug prevention program that's being held in communities throughout the nation.

Back in 1984 during the first year of the event, some 400 communities in 23 states participated, with 2.5 million Americans signing up for block watch programs or special neighborhood parties featuring crime-stopping tips and speakers from various law-enforcement agencies. Now, the night out events occur in all 50 states with more than 35 million taking part.

A number of cities in Central Washington have agreed to sponsor activities that bring attention to the very real and lasting impact residents can have in preventing crime. These communities include Ellensburg, Grandview, Granger, Mabton, Selah, Sunnyside, Toppenish, Union Gap, Wapato, White Swan, Yakima and Zillah.

Among the many activities that are involved with National Night Out is something called Project 365. Under this program, night out groups are asked to pick a problem area in their communities. It may be a park blighted by crime and graffiti or a street that has been the focus of recurring gang violence. The goal is to fix these areas in the next year, or 365 days.

Of course, Project 365 is just one idea.

Tuesday, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., free food and entertainment will be offered at Westside Park, 601 W. Second St. in Grandview. Other activities include face painting and inflatable jumpers. Sunnyside will host at least 16 block parties while Wapato will provide free hot dogs and family games from 6 to 9 p.m. at its city park, 1000 Camas Ave. Yakima's Southeast Community Center at South Eighth and Arlington streets will host games and offer barbecued treats from 5 to 8 p.m.

While cleaning up graffiti and coordinating a block watch program with law enforcement officials may take time, they are well worth the effort. So, too, are the events taking place Tuesday throughout the Yakima Valley. It does require taking a night out, but it may also lead to -- as the slogan goes -- taking a bite out of crime.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.