Guerrilla Knitting, not only a fun way to counter the dullness of the city, but also a strategy to allow urban dwellers to feel less threatened by crime. This is what happens in the United Kingdom, to be precise in Leicestershire, where the local police have decided to use guerrilla knitting to reduce the fear caused by crime.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Guerrilla Knitting, not just a fun medium for contrast the dullness of the city, but also a strategy to allow the inhabitants of urban areas to hear each other less threatened by crime. This is what happens in Britain, to be precise in the Leicestershire, where the local police have decided to use guerrilla knitting to reduce the fear of crime.
La Leicestershire Police he believes that thanks to Guerrilla Knitting, parks and main city streets will appear safer for citizens, helping to defeat their fear of criminals and at the same time keeping the bad guys at bay. The belief is that a more comfortable looking outdoor environment can reduce the perception of fear by citizens.
The decorations appeared above all on the trees in the parks, on the gates and on the street lamps, giving the cities of the area a touch of color and joy. Their realization has been entrusted to the students of the local schools and to real guerrilla knitting groups, such as the Knitting Guerillas of Birstall.
Actions related to Guerrilla Knitting are primarily aimed at forming new bonds between citizens within the different localities of the area. A more united community will see the presence of people who know they can count on each other, consequently feeling safer against possible attacks by criminals and bad guys.
The works created thanks to Guerrilla Knitting were positioned in the areas of the cities considered to be at greater risk of crime. Consequently, they will turn out to be the places most monitored by the local police, following the fears expressed by the citizens. The hope of the authorities is that citizens can feel safer, given that the level of fear expressed about crime would be very different from the real cases of danger detected.
Second Charlotte Bilby, an expert in criminology at Northumbria University, Guerrilla Knitting can represent aeffective weapon against the fear of crime and crime itself. It is not the first time that Guerrilla Knitting is considered as a powerful means of social cohesion, as happened last year a L'Aquila, thanks to the initiative "Let's get a patch", born to bring warmth and color back to the historic center of the city hit by the earthquake in 2009.
Marta Albè
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