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Why Sending Troops Won’t Fix Crime
The real get tough on crime solution involves investing in people
I don’t know anyone, Black or white, who likes crime. Most people, even in the highest-crime areas of America aren’t committing, and actually despise, crime.
Even in Memphis, which has the highest crime rate among major U.S. cities, 2% of the population is involved in violent crime. 2% of 600,000 (12,000) residents is still too many, of course, and it makes it difficult for the rest, but it’s important to remember that 98% of the city isn’t harming anyone.
Take it further: Black and white juries across America regularly convict people of all races for crimes, especially violent ones. Black and white residents call the same police when a crime occurs.
So let’s all agree on something: we all want crime, especially violent crime, stopped.
Thankfully, aside from a COVID-era spike, violent crime has generally declined over the past decade. In 2023 and 2024, violent crime dropped 6% and 4.5% respectively. Murders fell 14.9% nationally in 2024, aggravated assault dropped 5%, and robbery declined 3.8%.
Still, violent crime remains unacceptably high in cities like Memphis, St. Louis, Cleveland, Oakland, Albuquerque, Baltimore, Nashville, Detroit, and…
