Pubdate: Sun, 04 Mar 2001 Source: Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel (FL) Copyright: 2001 Sun-Sentinel Company Contact: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/services/letters_editor.htm Website: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/ Forum: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/community/interact1.htm Author: Kai T. Hill DANIA BEACH'S ANTI-DRUG PUSH RUBBING SOME THE WRONG WAY DANIA BEACH -- In the still of a Friday night, dozens of casually dressed anti-drug fighters parade out of the City Hall parking lot in a stream of cars bound for the city's most notorious drug haven. Some of the activists -- members of Turn Around Dania Beach -- are packed as many as five to a car, checking their surroundings from side and back windows. Others sit high in the back of a pickup truck, clad in their trademark white construction hats and bright yellow T-shirts that boast: It's drug-fighting time. "This night is for us to take back our community," shouts Tony Wrice, the son of the late Turn Around America founder Herman Wrice, who started the Dania chapter in October 1998. As the slow-paced stream of drug fighters flows into the low-income Modello Park neighborhood in the city's northwest section, drug dealers are unusually scarce, which disappoints some. Residents, who are mostly scattered about at convenience stores or taking strolls, observe the group's arrival with familiarity. Others pull back their window curtains to get a closer look at the action. The anti-drug crusaders step out of their cars and walk in a cluster as they shout boot camp-style chants through bullhorns, condemning dealers and pleading for residents to reclaim their neighborhood from drugs. What do we want? Clean streets. When do we want them? Now! We're fired up, we ain't taking no more. Sending a message From street corner to street corner, members young and old march and chant, with Broward sheriff's deputies serving as their guards. Some city commissioners and commission candidates are among the marchers this January night. At the corner of Northwest Fifth Avenue and Northwest First Street the drug fighters direct their chants toward a tavern where a group of men are standing. The men -- some dressed in work uniforms -- are engaged in conversation. Drug dealers, you can't hide. We're going to be doing it all night long. Bad boys, bad boys what you gonna do? What you gonna do when they come for you. The group of men notices the chanters but continue their conversation until two drug-fighters beam flashlights in their direction. At first, the men exchange surprised glances, then throw up their arms in unison and shout: "You got the wrong people, you got the wrong people." In your face For the past two years or so, Turn Around Dania Beach, a group of about 150 that has won broad acclaim in the city, has employed such in-your-face tactics in its fight against drugs. Members, who stage marches throughout the city once or twice a month, have been credited with helping reduce drug dealing and assisting the city and the Broward Sheriff's Office with several community development projects. They also have been heavily criticized for their approach and accused of targeting anyone they think might be committing crimes. "What they do is target and pick out people at random who have nothing to do with drugs," said former mayor Bobbie Grace, president of the Modello Park civic association. "They are wrong. It's the way they present themselves. You're not supposed to antagonize people." Jeff Bryant, who stood among the men that night, said Turn Around Dania Beach's actions were demeaning to him and his friends, who he said were simply enjoying a Friday evening out after work. As a counselor with the Department of Children and Families, Bryant said he's in court every day fighting for children's rights. "When I come home I don't want to be portrayed as someone I'm not just because I patronize a bar," he said. "It made me feel degraded like I went to school for nothing. I'm about to start graduate school, and it made me feel like a nobody." Sophia Steele, the group's coordinator, said she knows the criticism all too well. And if there is one possible drug dealer out of a group of guys standing around, then beaming the lights on them is worth it, she said. "To save a life, absolutely," she said. "Did you see the children across the street? Take a good look?" Mixed opinions Members of Turn Around Dania said they don't target specific residents when they march. "[We] target the whole neighborhood," said Steele, who owns a Dania beauty salon. Steele said the group targets street corners and areas where there have been numerous drug-related arrests and complaints from residents. "If they're for saving their community then why didn't they come over with us [and march]," Steele said, referring to the men who were standing on the corner. Some Modello Park residents said they appreciate the group's efforts to crack down on drug dealers. "It's not safe. ... Kids, they have no place to play so they just roam the streets," said Lajuan Funchess, 15, who was riding his scooter just a few blocks from the anti-drug marchers. But others disagree with the group's way of attacking the drug problem . After marching with the group for the first time that night, then-commission candidate Mike Nolan said he was left with mixed feelings. "The good thing about it is that members of the community are willing to take a courageous stand," he said. But he called some of the tactics "provocative." The group has received praise from the Sheriff's Office and Gov. Jeb Bush, who marched with the group in June. Last year, the city gave the group between $30,000 and $40,000, which covered the start-up costs of training volunteers. The city also gave the group $15,000 last year to help with the cost of Turn Around America's annual drug-fighters convention in Fort Lauderdale, said City Manager Mike Smith. Smith said residents have never complained to the city about the group's actions. Commissioner Bob Mikes, an avid marcher and supporter of the group, said he had some "question marks" at first about whether the group's drug-fighting approach would be effective. "The difference is day and night in what it used to be," Mikes said. "You could come here [Modello Park] at night. I'd slow down and someone with crack cocaine would try to sell it to me." Commissioner Jim Cali, however, feels differently. As vice mayor in 1998, Cali said he brought Herman Wrice to the city because he believed in his program, which empowered residents of particular neighborhoods to fight crime and drugs. But Cali said when Wrice came to Dania, "he changed his modus operandum." Cali said the marches and rallies work "when everyone in the neighborhood is on board." "But to randomly pick a house [as a target] without any firsthand knowledge is a problem," Cali said. Wrice, members say, was known for confronting suspected drug dealers face to face. When Wrice died last year, local members vowed to keep his vision alive. The group now holds these organized marches in various neighborhoods throughout the city. Sheriff's Office District 2 Chief Robert Anton said he "respects and supports the group 100 percent." "They want to see a positive change, they are interested in the community," he said. Merida Mitchell, who marched with the group that night, said she wouldn't be involved with the group if it pointed fingers randomly at people, "because that's not fair." Had Mitchell and others talked to the men before group members beamed lights on them, she might have discovered that Bryant, who wore a black leather jacket and black and red hat, was Mitchell's former student when she was a guidance counselor at Hollywood Hills High School. "All of us are career professionals ... but they're not trying to hear that," said Bryant, 30, who recognized Mitchell among the fiery chanters. Todd Shoats, wearing his gray manager's uniform from Prestige Property Management, said he was hurt by the group's actions. "It's not right for them to shine the light in people's face. We're not trying to hurt the community," said Shoats, 30. Turn Around member Joseph Demma sympathized with the men. "The flashlights, you're right about that. I don't like that but we are trying to send a message." - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D