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Re “Clean it up” (Your Views, March 31): Violence at the Oceanfront seems to often come not from visitors, but from our own fractured and underserved communities and from the response of more policing, more militarization of our police, more demonizing the civilians who shoot and kill, and more shielding the officers who shoot and kill. This will not bring greater safety to our city as a whole.

This city was born in white flight in the 1960s and has remained a sanctuary city for white supremacy and, a few months after the mass shooting in the city’s offices, a sanctuary city for those who think the Second Amendment is aimed at every citizen having military-style weaponry in his or her home. Our government has failed to adequately respond to the changing demographics of the 21st century, the declining quality of life in many of the poorly built subdivisions thrown together in the last quarter of the 20th century, the economic strains many of our fellow citizens faced before and during COVID-19, and the ongoing impacts of the structural racism built into the city’s infrastructure.

The city has many dedicated employees and new programs to respond to housing instability and food insecurity, but an antiquated and counterproductive response to community safety. Pharrell Williams provided a successful example of what can be done at the Oceanfront to allow for safe events for visitors. Who in the city will step up to propose and implement a similar response to the roots of violence in our citizens’ neighborhoods?

Kathryn Haugan, Virginia Beach