Round-the-clock city effort for youth

THE APRIL 3 editorial, "Often on Sunday: teen violence," contained some information about the city's community centers that I would like to clarify.

As the executive director of Boston Centers for Youth & Families, which runs the centers, I am proud of what the hard-working young men and women do every day at our 46 facilities. Our staff members have never told me that they "covet weekends and evenings off" when I ask them to work another hour or day.

More than half of our facilities are open on Saturdays and five are open on Sunday. Yes, we need to open more during the weekends, and we have a plan in place to prioritize 13 facilities in city hot spots.

Our street workers engage every day with young people who do not traditionally engage in youth programming. They connect these people with services and referrals, while offering support, conflict resolution, and sometimes just plain conversation.

Their work does not take place in our facilities and they don't work business hours, yet they are critical to the effort to end youth violence.

We need the 3,300 nonprofits in Boston to join in our effort to provide safe, fun places for Boston's youth and families by extending their hours and supporting Mayor Menino's commitment to engage all of our young people in positive programming.

ROBERT LEWIS JR.
Boston

I AGREE with criminologist James Alan Fox that "crime is not a 9 to 5 issue," but teen violence does not have as simple a solution as you suggest. You argue that, like hospital workers and police officers, youth workers should be on duty 24 hours a day; however, it is illogical to assume that youth centers would save many teens' lives by staying open later.

If almost half of Boston's crimes involving minors occur when the community centers are closed, that means that half of all crimes occur during the day, when these centers are open. From these numbers, it would seem that the centers are not saving many lives. And we're assuming that teens would be willing to go play "midnight basketball" as opposed to engaging in dangerous activities.

You cite no evidence that the centers that are open for longer periods of time reduce violence, and the examples of successful night programs would not necessarily apply to other communities.

Rather than "awaiting delivery" of expanded youth services, Bostonians should find ways to stop the problem itself.

REBEKAH SOKOL
Medford