The
story coming out of Kansas and Missouri about the murder of a pregnant woman is an unfolding tragedy but a comment from Kathy Sage, owner of the Whistle Stop Cafe in Melvern, KA where suspect Lisa Montgomery brought her "newborn" child, caught my eye in particular:
"You read about this stuff," she said. "It blows you away when it's here. This stuff is supposed to be in New York City or Los Angeles."
It's an old near-jerk response to crime in "quiet communities" but this time a cross-check with the recent
Boston Globe article on violence against expectant mothers presents a different picture.
The Globe article doesn't report geographic data on crimes against pregnant women but the anecdotal stories it notes reveal a widespread problem. Virgina, Oklahoma, Maryland, Mississippi, California, Kansas, Ohio, Illinois,Conneticut, Oregon, Indiana, Georgia, Idaho, and New York City have all experienced this kind of recurring crime. Overall, the Globe looked into 72 homicides from 24 states in 2002 alone.
The story sheds light on a nationwide tragedy but how can we deal with it if people are still clinging to the idea that this kind of event only happens in New York or Los Angeles? Does everyone have to experience such a tragedy in their own backyard before they wake up to the illusion of this Red State/Blue State nonsense?