Peace starts in our communities

Point by Point

• Eldred Central School has decided to cancel its remaining games against Livingston Manor as a result of last week’s altercation which may have had more to do with racial hostility than mere school rivalry.
• Factions from the two communities have long-standing antagonism that has never been mediated or resolved.
• Both towns occupy outlying areas of the county and are isolated as opposed to the merged Sullivan West district or the larger town districts such as Liberty and Monticello.
• While cancellation of the games may constitute a “cooling off” period, it does not address the roots of the problem and offers no solution to future reoccurrences as the teams are both members of the same division in the Orange County League and must play future games in all three seasons.
• What message are we sending by throwing up our hands and saying the situation is too hot to handle?
• Isn’t it our responsibility as a community to resolve our differences and develop a collaborative effort for the future?
• How can we address the global miscommunication and conflict if we cannot manage this on a local level?
• Non-profit organizations such as The Dispute Resolution Center which serves Orange, Ulster, Sullivan and Putnam Counties has longstanding experience in strategies to begin the healing process. Town meetings in each individual town, kids mediation sessions on both a group and individual level, workshops on alternatives to violence and community building can help solve the problem.
• Getting people to talk to each other is far more worthwhile than going to war. Violence is not a solution nor can it be an alternative.

Richard Ross, Youth Editor