Onwards to the new year of 2011, fellow anti-violence campaigners and crime fighters...

AN ANTI-KNIFE and anti-violence message for 2011 from Gary Trowsdale, helping lead the Damilola Taylor Trust and 'Count Me In' campaign... this is a good message where it highlights the societal  importance of helping young people and at least some of those on the fringe of criminality to have something to aspire to (other than violence and criminal activity). We would like politicians and big business (especially) to properly step up to the plate here...

2010 was a tough year for all those working in the youth services sector. The planning for the election then the election itself followed by the bedding in of a hybrid Government that has determined to create an era of austerity. Whatever one's political views, the mess those of us in the youth services sector find ourselves in now is far from fair and every politician in the country has a level of accountability for it.

Let's be honest though, the country is not financially bankrupt. Did anyone notice the figure of £15 million that was wasted on the flawed 2018 world cup bid? Where did that money come from? The economy that fuels the £250k a week wages of Wayne Rooney and his fellow England football team under performers.. where does that materialise from? "Out of thin air"? And what of the high earning senior civil servants that run the "system" that is failing us? And the banking industry bonuses?

We are staging the Olympics with much pomp and ceremony. Look what happened to Athens after they wasted public money in the same way. Meanwhile here in London we have "cycle super highways" forced on us at huge cost then get told there is no money for youth services. We read about new bridges being built over the Thames and of plans to build airports in the middle of the river yet we cant keep youth clubs open.

Has anyone in Government looked at how low-earning families from the inner cities are going to be able to keep their kids in school beyond 16 to take their A levels once EMA is stripped away from them. How many more kids will be walking the streets scratching their heads with nothing to do? Will there be jobs for them?

CMI remains dedicated to speaking out about knife crime and the need to influence young people positively about the dangers of carrying knives. It also has a social conscience though and the poverty and plight of the inner cities is very important to us as it is a big factor. The negative influence of the gangs gets stronger when the system is failing and politicians are imposing more suffering on our poorest people. Meanwhile we have never had a greater need for the law to be observed and proper governance of the justice system. This is not what we are seeing and not even what we are being promised by Kenneth Clarke!

So what do we do? Run away... Dig a big hole and bury ourselves in it then refuse to come out until sense and SENSITIVITY has returned? Or do we roll up our sleeves and say 2011.. BRING IT ON?

Happy New Year

Gary - Damilola Taylor Trust

Read more about and consider joining the Count Me In campaign

Murderous death toll: England capital since 2001

It's been 10 years since the killing of schoolboy Damilola Taylor (stabbed in the leg with a jagged bottle). A national newspaper published knife and gun crime statistics revealing a 138-strong list of the victims of violence in London since then... 138 in a single decade in just one city (30 shootings, 92 stabbings)...

Across England, c.835 young people aged under 14 have been admitted to hospital with knife wounds over the past 10 years.

Knife crime remains a tragic and terrible scourge affecting the UK... it remains unresolved.

Knife and gun violence victims (pictures) - page 1:

Knife and gun crime victims 'in memoriam': Nicholas Clarke, Amro Elbadawi, Lyle Tulloch, Jimmy Mizen, Rob Knox, Sharmaarke Hassan, Ben Kinsella, Shakilus Townsend, David Idowu, Frederick Moody, Michale Simon Wright, Shannen Vickers, Wahab Zaaki, Abdulkarim Boudiaf, Oluwaseyi Ogunyemi, Adam Pervaiz, Jahmal Mason-Blair, Maleha Masud, Carlbeatson Asideu, Michael McCarthy, Agnes Sina-inakoju, Wesley Sterling, Charlie Wright, Nicholas Pearton, Samuel Ogunro, Zac Olumegbon, Ailton Campos de Oliverira, Rio McFarlane, Marvin Henry, Samuel Adelagun

Knife and gun violence victims (pictures) - page 2:

Knife and gun crime victims 'in memoriam': Wayne Lawrence, Chris Gustave, Jason Rix, Wayne Henry, Jude Akapa, Shirone Booker, Shane Hegarty, Amias Hall, Junior Obiribo, Isa Abdul Mutakabbir, Leon Morton, Tanita Ffrench, Luke Plowright, Marvin Benoit, Ashley Bridgeman, Michael O'Connor, Christopher Alexis, Kieran Van Dross Rodney-Davis, Kashif Mahmood, Ruth Okechukwu, Gavin Brown, Christopher Davis, Jamail Newton, Dean Lahlou, Jevon Henry, James Smartt-Ford, Martin Dinnegan, Abu Shahin, Abukar Mahamud, Nathan Foster, Ofiyke Nmezu, Sunday Essiet, Tung Le, Michael Alexander Jones, Ryan Bravo, Nilanthan Murddi, Charles Junior Hendricks, Shaquille Smith, Oliver Kingonzila, Craig Marshall, Steven Lewis, Salum Kombo, Isschan Nicholls, Olukorede Fajinmi, Jessie Wright, Sofyen Belam-Ouaddin, Godwin Lawson, Aliza Mirza

Knife and gun violence victims (pictures) - page 3:

Knife and gun crime victims 'in memoriam': James Peregrino, Tyrone Rowe, Scott Young, Abdul Maye, Benjamin Wright, Supenthar Ramachandran, Adrian Worrell, Kayser Osman, Junaid Sheikh, Jahmai Conquest, Sika Michaels, Jadie Brissett, Kishokumar Balachandiran, Dean Davis, Clarence Ross, Sajid Patel, Colin Igwe, Ashley Hedger, Karl Hamilton, Anton Hymab, Steven Carrigan-Cole, Sayed Najee-Bullah, Robert Levy, Warren Graham, Triston Christmas, David Wheaton, Charlotte Polius, Stefan Persaud, Troy Robinson, Hussein Hursi, Mahir Osman, Tommy Winston, Barrington Williams-Samuels, Kiyan Prince, Alex Kamonda, Julian Knight, Paul McMillan, Jerome Vassell, Eugene Attram, Emmanuel Oduinewu, Michael Oosunmu, Billy Cox, Kodjo Yenga, Adam Regis, Paul Erhahon, Danielle Johnson, Dwaine Douglas, Sian Simpson, Ben Hitchcock, Annaka Keniesha Pinto, Mohammed Ahmed, Edvin Johnson, Rizwan Darbar, Philip Poru, Etem Celebi, Jack Large, David Nowak, Nassirudeen Osawe, Henry Bolombi, Boduka Mudianga

Perhaps there are signs of a little hope: murders and attempted murders with a knife, in all ages, have dropped slightly compared to last year - 530 in 2008-09; 467 in 2009-10.

(Published in the Independent on Sunday - report was by Andrew Johnson, Nina Lakhani, Susannah Butter)