A culture of revenge drives many of Cincinnati’s shootings and homicides, say police and street outreach workers battling to interrupt the cycle, reports the Cincinnati Enquirer. “It's urgent because getting in the middle of this is a way we can save a life, actually two,” said Police Chief James Craig, who believes at least half of all shootings in the city are motivated by revenge. It's a critical issue in building a safer region, too, from struggling and rebounding core neighborhoods to suburbs. “We're one,” Craig said. “If we don't wrap our arms around these men, there will be more bloodshed.”
The Enquirer describes incidents in which violence was prompted by revenge. A street preoccupation with respect is often mistakenly associated with drug-related turf wars, said Robin Engel, a University of Cincinnati criminologist. Engel recently consulted in Scotland on creation of an anti-violence program. “There are similarities,” she said of anti-social responses to confrontation and intense poverty that create a sense of being respected and valued. “It's about individuals who are profoundly marginalized. They have had constant exposure to violence – domestic violence and child abuse.”