Is West 琉璃神社 a hotbed of violent crime?

If you were to believe Macleans Most Dangerous Cities list, you鈥檇 definitely have cause to consider that possibility.

West 琉璃神社 is ranked 69 of 237 Canadian cities.

琉璃神社 ranked a much safer sounding 148, which is a significant improvement from last year when the rating was 34.

RELATED: Vernon one of Canada鈥檚 most dangerous places

Go back six years and 琉璃神社 gained the dubious distinction of ranking as Canada鈥檚 sixth most dangerous city.

Before you pose for a selfie in some Okanagan branded kevlar, remember these stats come from a hodgepodge of data that includes everything from violent crimes and car break ins鈥攖he latter of which often bumps Okanagan cities way up the list.

What may be more relevant than methodology, however, is how the rankings alter perceptions.

In the U.S., the Federal Bureau of Investigation, whose statistics are used in similar articles on their side of the border, said rankings 鈥渓ead to simplistic and/or incomplete analyses that often create misleading perceptions adversely affecting cities and counties, along with their residents.鈥�

You could argue we鈥檝e already had 鈥渕isleading perceptions鈥� getting in the way of this community鈥檚 growth.

The Central Okanagan has its fair share of social ills. You鈥檇 have to be blind to not have noticed the proliferation of shopping carts belonging to people who have no house to call home.

You鈥檇 have to be deaf to not know that there are a ghastly number of people dying from drug overdoses.

READ MORE: B.C. overdose deaths drop in June, but 100+ still dying each month

But do these things have anything to do with one another? Do they actually create legitimate cause to fear for your well-being?

We don鈥檛 think so.

In fact, we think that the erroneous belief that this city is getting more dangerous creates barriers to providing the services needed to help the community鈥檚 most vulnerable.

Often, in the run-up to the recent civic election, 鈥渉omelessness鈥� and 鈥渃rime鈥� were used interchangeably, when that鈥檚 far from the case.

That kind of fearmongering sets a dangerous course for any city.

So let鈥檚 look past the rankings and look more closely at the communities they describe.

edit@kelownacapnews.com
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