HUD Using Security Grants to Buy Cameras

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is responsible for almost all of the public housing you will find around the United States. While this federal department also does a lot of residential housing that's offered as low-income affordable housing, the fact it that they're mostly dealing with high-rise housing projects in inner cities, that are available primarily to minority families on Section 8 housing, meaning that they live there rent free. There are well over 500 of these projects in the United States, housing thousands upon thousands of people. One big issue with these projects, however, is that they're often hotbeds of drug and gang violence. This is why HUD is going to use security grant money to pay for cameras to install around some of their most troubled properties.

The primary focus of these security grants will be the Wilson Park housing development project, located in South Philadelphia. With a housing demographic of 100% black American residents, it's a touchy topic to bring to the mainstream media. You will find very few outlets covering this story. It's mostly just a local story in Philadelphia. When these sorts of topics make it to the mainstream, the usual TV networks owned by the same few mega corporations begin to insinuate that some racists are trying to make black people's lives miserable by needlessly installing security cameras. Though the fact is that crime is out of control at Wilson Park, and residents have come forward claiming that they do not feel safe. This is why HUD wants security cameras. It wouldn't matter who lived there; if the crime was the same and people were coming forward, cameras would be going up. Though because of the situation, this story is being kept very local.

HUD is putting up $250,000 in grant money. This seems like a lot for cameras around one housing project, but Wilson Park is pretty large. The housing unit offers up 727 apartments, and over 2,000 people live here. It might be one housing project on a small parcel of land, but it has the population of an entire small town living there. No matter the race, gender or nationality of such a community, you are bound to find some level of crime. Though because the population is so large in this one area, it's vital that a wide array of different cameras be put up. In fact, some fear that $250k may not be enough. Some are arguing that they also need a lot of additional real security guards there. The issue here is that security guards don't usually fit well with these sorts of projects, and it doesn't usually end well for the security guards.

At this date, Wilson Park has not announced when the cameras will be installed or how many will end up being installed. This is very likely because the grant was just announced and no one's had to time to plan out the logistics of the situation. However, it could be a security move in itself, so that the younger criminal element of the housing project doesn't know precisely where the cameras are going to be located or when they will be installed. We do not know at this point which it is.

An Emotional Measure More Than a Practical One

Everyone feels bad for the older residents of Wilson Park who are complaining about having to deal with the criminal element there. People should not have to live that way and something should certainly be done. But is putting up cameras really something that's going to improve the lives of the residents there? The fact is that this is far from the first time HUD has handed over grants to housing projects so that they might increase security. It's actually a bit of a game for the residents to sit outside and throw rocks at the cameras until they're all broken. The ones they can reach, they typically spray-paint over. And insofar as they know where the cameras are located, they just avoid them if nothing else. So, no one can say for sure if this sort of measure works. It seems to be a measure to make the people living there feel a little bit safer than before.

It also matters if the cameras are broadcasting or recording. If they're only recording, then it's not doing much at all to prevent crime. Whereas if they're broadcasting live, there will need to be some additional measures in place, like security to monitor the cameras and act when something goes wrong. That would likely end up costing a whole lot more than the $250 grant being given to Wilson Park.