Danmark er god til genbrug- men når vi taler bandepakken, giver det ikke megen mening: »Det giver meget lidt mening, at vi endnu engang vælger den dårlige – og dårligt begrundede – løsning. Det er 2023. Vi har overvældende viden og evidens, der tydeligt og klart påviser, at straf ikke løser problemet,« skriver Mira Skadegård.

In today’s Berlingske, I discuss the government's newest anti-gang initiative. I wonder why research, knowledge and experience in the field are downgraded and ignored when we know that an overemphasis on punishment intensifies the problems and harms young people who need very different forms of help. Why is it that the government chooses (again) to approach the problem with inept and old-fashioned punitive thinking and heavy-handed solutions?

This approach reflects a tendency to let myth win over fact. Attitudes, feelings and fear run the show, rather than knowledge and evidence.
We know that vulnerable young people (regardless of skin colour), young people who are ostracized, etc. are candidates for gangs. We know that early interventions and help for vulnerable families work. We know that gang-crime is not culturally or ethnically conditioned. When populist rhetoric link skin color and ethnicity to gang crime, it is discrimination – i.e. a racialization of social problems.

Knowledge, experience and evidence clearly point to the fact that harder punishment is not a solution. Denmark has every opportunity to do the right thing. It is truly saddening that our government has chosen a populist route, where the vulnerable are once again thrown under the bus. It seems like another populist quest for votes. #dkpol #dkmedier #nondiscrimination #stopracism #social sustainability