River City Writer

If this is your first time here, I suggest you read the first part of this series Reason to Leave Edmonton – Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

While I’m not normally one to suggest that people move away from Edmonton, the people who do often have good reasons for doing so. This week, I’ll be talking about some of these reasons, as well as ways to solve the issues in question without leaving the city.

So far, I’ve talked about Edmonton’s lengthy winters, our supposed lack of a cultural scene, and our problems with urban sprawl. Today, I’ll talk about the high murder rate.

Edmonton has the highest murder rate in Canada

Statistics from late 2006 showed that Edmonton had the highest murder rate in Canada. I can’t find accurate stats for 2007, but I know that we still have among the most murders, per capita, in the country.

I don’t know that I really need to elaborate on this particular point. A high murder rate is, one assumes, a pretty good reason not to live somewhere.

Edmonton is actually a very safe city

Despite our high murder rate, Edmonton is actually a very safe city. Personally, I feel completely comfortable walking around the vast majority of the city at all hours of the day and night. There are a few areas I’d probably avoid after dark, but they’re few and far between.

While we do have problems with violent crime—including, obviously, murder—most of the incidences are isolated, and generally occur between people who know one another (domestic abuse, for example).

As for the murders themselves, the vast majority of these occur among people who engage in high risk lifestyles. Many, if not most, of the murders that occur in Edmonton are gang-related. That, in itself, isn’t necessarily a comforting fact.

Gang wars can result in innocent people getting caught in the crossfire. However, this is an incredibly rare occurrence in Edmonton. In fact, I can only think of one instance when an innocent bystander was killed as a result of gang activity. Back in 1999 Adnan Pervez was mistakenly killed by a hit-man who had been hired to kill his older brother, Usman.

So, what should be made of all of this?

I’m suggesting that, despite the high murder rate, Edmonton is actually a very safe city, and the vast majority of murders that occur here do not directly affect average Edmontonians. While I am hardly qualified to suggest a solution to murder and other violent crimes in Edmonton, I am confident in saying that Edmonton is actually an incredibly safe city.

I’ve lived here my entire life and never once have I felt unsafe in my city, and I see no reason for most other people to feel  unsafe.

If you engage in a high risk lifestyle, or you’re one of the many unfortunate homeless people living in the city, then yes, you’re going to run into some dangerous situations. While that’s unfortunate, and something needs to be done to help those people, the fact remains that Edmonton is very safe for the vast majority of Edmontonians.