A few weeks ago, a pleasant evening of gaming was rudely interrupted by what sounded like a fight just outside my window. I looked outside to see 3 shadows involved in conflict. The two younger looking figures appeared to be picking a fight with an older gentleman and eventually did jump him a cowardly manner. I jumped out of my seat and headed down the stairs but another local resident beat me to it, chasing the young hooligans away. Within minutes, residents from several buildings were swarming the street, flagging down an ambulance (which was remarkably slow despite multiple 911 calls) and falling over each other to give statements to police. Though most of us only knew each other in passing, we were united by a profound disdain for lawlessness in our middle-class / working-class corner of the GTA.
In other words, our response was a far cry from the recent mayhem in the city’s east end.
Last week, the body of 17 year old Omar Wellington was found in a wooded area close to his Flemingdon Park home. Wellington was stripped to his underwear, severely beaten and later stabbed several times. Like the assault in my neighborhood, Wellington’s beating was also witnessed by many residents. However, instead of intervening or alerting authorities, residents simply went inside and looked the other way. The Toronto Star reported that some residents even came outside to alert mothers to bring their children inside to avoid becoming witnesses. Investigators believe the silence is out of fear of retribution from the assailants, who are rumored to live in the area.
As Wellington was laid to rest over the weekend, several mourners (including Omar’s mother) wondered aloud why neighbors didn’t have the courage or decency to contact police or call for help. According to the police, a significant amount of time –possibly 22 hours- elapsed between the time of the beating and the discovery of Wellington’s body.
At first glance, Wellington’s death and the apparent apathy from local residents does appear to be symptomatic of Toronto’s cultural decline. The ‘hood mentality has taken over in many quarters - youths wear t-shirts embroidered with the phrase “Stop Snitchin†while adults live in fear of exercising the moral authority that would have been expected in previous generations.
However there are three aspects to this case that don’t quite fit the “bad neighborhood†cliché:
- Flemingdon Park has a checkered history but it is far from the worst neighborhood in Toronto. According to the Toronto Star, only 1 of last year’s 78 murders (Tate Best) occurred in the region.
- There was no gunplay involved in the attack. Groups of youths brawling can be found in virtually any neighborhood. Depending on the observers’ distance from the mêlée, a 6 on 1 fight could have looked like a 4 on 3 fight. In a rougher neighborhood, such a conflict would not have necessarily earned a call to police.
- Even in their beatified recollection after death, friends and relatives of Omar Wellington were forced to admit his checkered past. Most importantly, Wellington was fingered for a robbery that occurred shortly before the beating took place.
Hence neighborhood fear is but one possible explanation. It’s also possible that residents saw a fight in progress (which may be irregular in your neighborhood but not necessarily theirs) and didn’t want to get involved in case it escalated into something serious. It’s possible that Omar Wellington’s prior criminal activity won him enemies and some residents were happy to see him receive street justice.
Hopefully the media doesn’t let this story slide away. The outcome should be fairly interesting.
its only a matter of time before dey r next!
Brothers wonder “why i can’t get none”.
It’s because you don’t deserve it bitch.
get respect for yourself and the rest will follow.
People need to get their shit together man.