LAKELAND — "Ours is a nation forged in violence," said the Rev. Arthur L. Cribbs Jr., moderator of the May 18 teleconference "Kids, Guns, Violence: Making a Difference." He said our nation was born in revolution and achieved greatness through slavery, civil war and two world wars, and many of our heroes came out of these violent conflicts.

Despite the violence inherent in our culture, the teleconference’s four panelists agreed that the best way to stop violence among children is for caring adults to form positive relationships with young people in their community.

The 90-minute teleconference produced by the United Methodist Teleconference Connection began with an overview of violence in American culture.

In a prerecorded commentary, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley said 12 kids per day are victims of guns and that young boys are the primary perpetrators of violent crimes among children because they receive less affection, are taught to hide their emotions and are more likely to model violent behavior seen in the media. Girls, he said, tend to hurt themselves, suffering from eating disorders or attempting suicide.

Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. David Grossman believes the media is a primary factor in the increase of violent crimes. He cited a study completed in Canada in which two neighboring towns were compared.

Fifteen years after television was introduced in one town, the murder rate doubled. The second town did not experience the same increase. According to Grossman, the reason for the 15-year lag between the introduction of television and the increase in crime was that television violence has the greatest impact on young children, who act out that violence when they get older.

Panelist Dr. Pamela Riley, executive director of the Center for the Prevention of School Violence, Raleigh, N.C., said the job of raising children in today’s society has been relegated to grandparents, older siblings, peers or the children themselves because of working parents and broken homes.

Sarah Wilke, director of the Wesley-Rankin Community Center, Dallas, Tx., says that while improvements need to be made at home, "if the home is hell, society is supposed to be the next net." She said the disintegration of neighborhoods and community has helped feed the problem of violence among children.

The solution, according to Riley, is to have "a positive adult in their [children’s] life that cares about them." She said mentoring programs are especially effective for boys because they crave the attention and teaching of older men.

Panelist Jerel A. Eaglin, director of Youth Services for the National Crime Prevention Council in Washington, D.C., said that adults do not need to start new programs to reach children, but should get involved in programs "already involved and working." According to Eaglin, people who want or need to start a new program should involve neighbors, schools, community groups and children, who know what kind of programs they need and can help design successful ones.

Warning signs of potentially violent children