Teachers Forum News Update - April 28, 2004

Commentary

Oppose the Notion of "Violence Prevention"

Whether one examines anti-bullying measures, so-called school security initiatives,

or violence prevention programs, one finds, over and over again that the main
theme is given as the need to "stop the problem before it starts." The numerous
laws and measures are based on the notion of prevention, which is defined as
something that is "used or devised to stop something from happening, or to stop
people from doing a particular thing."
First and foremost, taking as one’s starting point the need to "stop violence in
schools" means one necessarily targets the students as the source of the problem
and, commonly, police as the solution. Students, the police and psychologists
repeat over and over again, are "potentially violent" and must be "managed." By
targeting students as the source of the problem, people are blocked from realizing
or even discussing that problems such as bullying, depression and social isolation of
students are social in nature, and thus require social solutions. They do not exist as
individual problems, i.e., they do not originate in individuals, but in the social
relations that characterize the society. Thus, this "prevention" approach actually
blocks parents, students and teachers from uniting and working out together real
solutions to the intensifying problems the youth and society face. Instead, students’
behavior is criminalized, as all are labeled "potential" threats, and everyone is to be
afraid of everyone else. Teachers are to become informants and enforcers for the
police. This is a recipe for disaster, not a solution!
Equally important is this: the notion of prevention justifies attacking students rights
and the basic democratic premises of innocent until proven guilty, due process and
habeas corpus. How so? If prevention means "stopping people from committing acts
of violence" logic holds that one must be able to identify the person who will in the
future commit a violent act. On this basis, the arbitrary notion of "potentially
violent," that youth have a "propensity to commit violent acts" is popularized,
normalized and justified. Unless one believes in clairvoyance, determining those
who will commit violent crimes in the future is impossible, and inherently arbitrary.
In U.S. society it will also necessarily be racist.
Just as important, the notion of "potentially violent" serves as a justification for
using force against students who have committed no crime, violated no school rule.
This of course violates all three of the basic democratic premises listed above. The
claims to be able to "identify potentially violent youth" are in fact a justifications for
impunity, where school officials can suspend and expel students at will under the
guise of solving the problem of violence. Now, similar actions are to be done in the
name of "school security," and "preventing terrorism."
Youth are not the source of violence in society, and criminalizing behavior on the
basis of so-called intent will only make matters worse and be used to unleash more
attacks on the youth. The hypocrisy of the ruling circles is revealed by examples
like former President Clinton, after the Columbine tragedy in Colorado, calling on
the youth to solve problems with words not violence at the same time that the US
military was wantonly bombing Yugoslavia and Iraq.
The U.S. system is in contempt of itself, freely violating its own laws and
constitutional guarantees, and can offer no solution to the problems facing society
except more violence. In order to turn things around, students, parents and
teachers must reject the notion of "violence prevention" and instead put forward
the defense of their rights and the rights of all as the basis for solving the problems
in society.