Killadelphia. Filthadelphia. Two nicknames that are used to ironically describe the City of brotherly love, Philadelphia. Philadelphia is viewed negatively by both outsiders and insiders. We have built a reputation of violent behavior, whether it’s a new game between kids, or even aggravated assault between adults. A recent offense from philadelphia youth would be “The punching game” which is when Philadelphia youth assault strangers usually, on different forms of public transportation for fun.
However, while we rightfully worry about our own well being and that of the youth in this city countries all over the world experience if not equal but even more intense forms of violence in their day to day life. Completely violating an idea of safety that may or may not be there. The question that lingers is whether or not us as Americans should worry or let alone pay attention to safety in other Nations across the world.
The hazardous state of safety is very real all over the globe and people are dealing with the consequences of living without being able to walk outside their homes safely.
For instance the Syrian army is constantly finding themselves behind enemy lines with the rebel armies that are in their own countries. “It is pretty much every day that they try to attack our positions. It happens in the mornings, the afternoons, the evenings and at night. When we see them, we shoot,” one Syrian soldier told CNN. Many of the positions that are currently being deemed as a “battle ground” are the ruins of suburbs in Syria.
Another example regarding these concerns of global safety is the conviction of Mexican drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero who will serve up to 40 years or more for the killings alone, and is now a fugitive to the U.S. for murder and kidnapping charges. However, despite the impact he had on the U.S. regarding the organisation of illegal drugs Quintero kidnapped and murdered many more people in Mexico and other parts of Central and South America. Quintero also had employees who worked for him either making the drugs or distributing them to others.
These are all examples of current epidemics concerning civilian safety across the world.
So, why don’t we pay more attention? To an extent, we do pay mind to these topics, but only according to whether they are trending. The amount of time we give to these issues is always in direct correlation by the amount of time it takes out of our lives. Weather it gets in the way of work or a T.V. show, for most Americans the acknowledgement of global issues is an inconvenience.
We have founded our lives on the concept of independence and have confused that with individualism, and we now feel that our lives are the only things to be concerned about. We are trapped in a never ending cycle of immediate gratification and an almost spoiled concept of living.
In order to try and raise awareness, SLA Media has decided to publish a series of articles that explore global current events. The goal is to enlighten people about what is going on across the sea not just their backyard.
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