Demming: Crime is not a community problem—it is a national failure

“Trinidad and Tobago could only progress if Laventille does,” Winston Dookeran said in May 2010.

Have we moved beyond this idea? Have we accepted that crime is not a group problem?

It is not an “Afro problem”, an “Indian problem”, or a “PNM problem”. Crime is a national problem, and it will only be solved when we accept collective responsibility and confront structural inequality and long-standing governance failures across all communities.

Too often, leaders label entire communities as criminal, even though crime is usually concentrated in specific areas. Take Tunapuna. The vast majority of residents are decent, hardworking, law-abiding mixed citizens.

It has traditionally elected PNM representatives, yet its population is a true reflection of Trinidad and Tobago—ethnically mixed and socially diverse.

The fact that Tunapuna voted differently in 2025 does not change who it is, nor does it redefine the community. It simply reminds us that voter behaviour and political outcomes cannot be reduced to race.

This framing matters because it shapes how we assign identity, power, and blame.

Race-based explanations also ignore economic and educational realities. If race caused crime, how do we explain Point Fortin: a predominantly Afro-Trinidadian, long-standing PNM constituency with relatively low levels of violent crime?

When national leaders publicly link crime to communities, they legitimise private biases and turn them into accepted assumptions, with serious consequences.

Leadership accountability is just as critical. The prime minister stated that two senators requested bribes to support a Bill in parliament, yet did not name them. This raises troubling questions.

What prompted the statement? Has this behaviour been witnessed before? Is unethical conduct becoming normalised within our political system?

If we continue to avoid these questions—structural and ethical—we will never fix our problems. Accountability must begin with leadership, and citizens must also accept their shared responsibility to act with integrity.

Only then can we begin to get it right.

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Dennise Demming

Dennise Demming grew up in East Dry River, Port of Spain and has more than 30 years experience as a communication strategist, political commentator and event planner. She has 15 years experience lecturing business communications at UWI and is the co-licensee for TEDxPortofSpain. Dennise is a member of the HOPE political party.