"There will be people who will say this is an infringement on civil rights. But these are members of gangs; people who attack old ladies in the streets or sell drugs to their grandchildren. Those are bigger violations of human rights than a law that says if you want support from a government department, you must not wear gang insignia".
But it will be OK to wear your patch in your state-owned house, when you are driving on a state-owned highway, visiting your state-owned GP to get a sickness certificate signed off, visiting the chemist to get your kids state-paid prescriptions filled or visiting a cash machine to draw your state-paid benefit.
You can do all that but if you chance to work for a living and it's on government owned property - a forest perhaps - forget it.
This country is so schizophrenic about gangs. This approach can only be described a bumbling attempt to brush them further under the carpet. There still there though. And once again ACT appears to be in support.
7 comments:
That's it. Todd McClay patches and National insignia are banned from my house.
I feel threatened by people wearing priests collars, Warriors jerseys, Stubbies shorts and Iron Maiden t-shirts. Can the Government please ban these at the same time?
Actually, wearing a gang patch is not proof of anything and banning them is just another step towards the police state this country seems so determined to become.
Lindsay - I disagree with your assessment. The banning of gang patches in Wanganui has not only reduced overt gang presence and activity, but there has been a significant reduction (around 15% in less than a year) of gang-related crime. The shopping centre from which I pick up the mail each day used to be a Black Power hangout, and patched gang members used to strut around defiantly. They disappeared almost overnight when the patch ban came into force, and retailers there noticed an immediate difference in foot traffic. Even though the patch ban is currently in limbo, there has been no return of gang members.
I fully support this move by Todd McClay which deserves a public airing via the select committee process.
I'd like to ask McClay to tell me when a gang member has "attacked an old lady in the street". I want specifics. I might even turn up to the select committee and ask him.
Inventory2,
"Between March 2009 and March 2010 there has been an estimated 15% fall in the number of gang members in Wanganui. This may be due to the bylaw, but strong anti-gang operations by Police have also contributed to gang members moving out of the Wanganui area or receiving custodial sentences."
Wanganui District Council
As I said, brushing gangs under the carpet.
At the risk of Godwins...
I imagine gang crime also reduced markedly in Hitler's Germany too....simply because the state was the biggest, meanest gang going.Private sector crime always seems to reduce when state sector crime flexes its mussels...
"mussels"? The state sector has those?
Farmed or natural?
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