Hold tight Canarsie! The red berets are right around the corner.
Guardian Angels founder — and Canarsie native — Curtis Sliwa is hoping to bring one of his famed red and white safety patrols to the neighborhood in light of all the acts of violence that have ripped through the community this summer.
“There’s no question that [Canarsie] is in need of a safety patrol,” Sliwa, who’s group just began patrolling the Coney Island Boardwalk, said. “I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the values I learned there and I’d be happy to return the favor.”
Sliwa’s parents still live in Canarsie right on Avenue K, he said. The citizen watchdog turned radio personality learned all about the violence hitting the area after picking up the Canarsie Digest and other local papers during a recent visit.
“I see no reason why we can’t create a patrol at the L station on Rockaway Parkway and start from there,” said Sliwa, who just started a safety patrol in nearby Coney Island to handle crime concerns there. “We’ll see what happens after a period of success in Coney Island.”
Despite the uptick in shootings, Sliwa said his parents — like many proud Canarsie residents — aren’t being scared off.
“My father is the ultimate tough man,” Sliwa explained. “He says the only way he’s going to leave is through Guarino Funeral Home feet first on a gurney.”
Since the beginning of the summer, Canarsie has hosted eight bloody acts of violence, including four murders. So far, cops have only made one arrest.
While appreciative of Sliwa’s willingness to help, Deputy Inspector Milt Marmara, the commanding officer of the 69th Precinct, said the additional patrols wouldn’t quell the violence since, so far, it appears that all the attackers knew their victims.
“If I see a lot of violence in the street or gang activity, I would bring in other resources. It’s something we’ve done in the past,” said Marmara. “But in this case, where these individuals are being targeted and the violence is being driven by personal grudges and vendettas, [the extra patrols] are not going to make a difference.”
