The Key West Citizen

In Saturday's column, George A. Wood, District Commissioner of the Boy Scouts, discussed various factors contributing to juvenile delinquency. He continues today:

It is revealing to note that low-cost housing projects reduce rates of delinquency. But even in slum areas where low-living standards and wretched conditions flourish, crime and lawlessness are the exception rather than the rule. The majority of children in these areas, thanks to the courage, honesty and moral integrity of their parents, grow up to be good and occasionally outstanding citizens.

Another cause of delinquency, many believe, is the lack of adequate recreational facilities. Supervised playgrounds, in sufficient numbers so they are not too far from the child's neighborhood area, will keep many juveniles off the streets and out of trouble.

The Colored Navy Wives Club here has done a wonderful job in this field.

Another important factor in delinquency, often overlooked, is the disparity between what we, as American citizens, preach to our children and how we actually conduct our daily lives.

Cynicism, emphasis on material rather than upon spiritual values, unethical practices of some business and professional groups, and occasional tieups among police, politicians and criminal elements are widely at variance with the moral precepts emanating from the editorial page, the classroom and the pulpit. Observation of this double standard by our children often fosters bewilderment and a subsequent breakdown in values, in concepts of what is right and wrong, moral and immoral.

With a widespread flaunting of the law, with a "he got his, I'll get mine" attitude so prevalent in modern American life, is it any wonder that our children get the idea that honesty, thrift and hard work don't "pay off," that it is possible to get something for nothing, and that the end justifies the means?

Delinquency Traced To Home

But while the general economic, social and cultural environment is important, by far the greatest percentage of delinquency can be traced directly to the home. It is scarcely an exaggeration to state that delinquency is a family affair-that in the background of almost every juvenile delinquent is a delinquent parent.

No substitute has been, or will be, found for the development that stems from the warm, close relationship between responsible, thoughtful parents and their children. Nor, will a few hours daily in the classroom, in Sunday School instruction, and in the activities of character building groups, fine as they are, counteract the influence of a depraved home environment.

Contrary to popular belief, delinquent parents are not recruited solely from areas "south of the tracks." They are of many types, drawn from all levels of society. Almost equally culpable are the drunken, shiftless father of the slums, who abandons his children to the care of society, and the cocktail-drinking society matron, immersed in a whirl of parties and social affairs, who entrusts her children's upbringing to ill-trained maids and other servants.

Before discussing what can be done to alleviate such conditions, it may be well to consider what parents owe their children by virtue of having brought them, unasked, into this world.

Family Responsibility

Family responsibility begins long before birth, in adequate parental preparation and planning -and in proper prenatal care to insure that infants will be born healthy in mind and body. Yet today, in a country that boasts advanced technological facilities and the world's highest living standards thousands of babies start life with serious physical afflictions, and congenital mental defects.

Certainly, children have a right to the love and affection of their parents.

The unwanted child, whether rejected consciously or unconsciously, is inclined toward serious personality disorders whose effect may never be fully erased.

Some critics of the old-fashioned school contend that too much affection results in "spoiled brats."

Rather, may it not be that the "spoiled" child feels inadequate and emotionally insecure? Lavishing toys, gifts and material advantages on children is no substitute for frequent displays of genuine affection.

(To Be Concluded Tuesday)