Equal Justice for Racial Crimes

BOSTON SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT Robert C. Wood was right when he said on Friday that Boston's racial climate, rather than the school system, was responsible for explosions of racial hate that burned throughout the city this week. But though his analysis of the cause of tensions is correct, his solution--a $100,000 addition to the school budget for more security personnel--offers no more than a thimbleful of relief to the thousands of Bostonians affected by their neighbors' renewed hostilities.

Racial violence continues unchecked in Boston largely because white-instigated crimes are often overlooked by the police, and when an arrest is made, the accused are rarely prosecuted on charges commensurate with their alleged crimes. More rarely still are they convicted. Blacks, too, have contributed to the escalation of violence by retaliating with terrorism of their own, but they do so with a far greater assurance of being apprehended and convicted.

In the past five years, over a dozen whites have escaped conviction for fatal or near-fatal assaults against unarmed, solitary blacks. Of those who have been apprehended for these crimes, several have stood trial posing as the sole perpetrators of mob acts which involved scores of people. Approximately 10 whites were arrested at East Boston's most recent demonstration-cum-riot; only five whites were arrested in connection with the firebombing of a black family in East Boston last year. In both cases, observers estimated crowds of over 200 participants.

When compared with the harsh punishments meted out to blacks who commit crimes against whites, these responses to white crimes are no more than handslaps. No one, including black leaders, advocates a relaxation of standards for punishing violence--especially mob violence--for any group, but the law must be equitably enforced. Otherwise, there is no deterrent for would-be attackers, who will feel free to stone buses, overturn cars, and participate in attacks on innocent passersby like that on a Harvard student last week.

RECENTLY, groups such as the Citywide Parents Advisory Committee have tried to stem violence in the schools by organizing boycotts, demanding that city leaders speak out, and lobbying for better protection for students both inside and outside school. Police have launched a Bureau of Investigative Service inquiry to determine the extent of adult involvement in the teenagers' walkouts, and dozens of community groups, such as the Urban League and the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, have assembled informal conferences to discuss ways of cooling tempers within their communities.

Courageous and difficult endeavors such as these must of course be applauded by concerned Bostonians. But until blatant acts of disregard for the property, security, and civil rights of others receive the punishment they deserve--regardless of who commits these acts--Boston will remain an expanse of separate minefields.