Is Brixton a suitable enviroment for students?

A point well made. However, Melville's 7th street is seemingly not any different. People crowd in all the time to drink and often end up behaving badly. We have a culture of alcohol abuse in this country and that needs to change first before real change can be made.

I do not believe that blood on the pavemnent will disturb a child any more than front page news articles and pictures, of a small child being mauled by a dog. Violence is a norm for this country and children hear their parents and peers discussing this subject daily. Unfortunately the exposure to violence and blood on the pavements, and in pictures in the media, for all to view, including children, eventually makes one immune to bloodshed. Should an establishment be prone to fights breaking out on a regular basis, close them down as a danger to the publics safety.
Alcohol is the major root cause of disturbances in 7th street Melville. To date I have not witnessed any signs or warnings in Melville advising people of the inherent dangers of alcohol abuse. Perhaps the powers that be, may be missing the point, in the direction they are taking, in dealing with 7th street disturbances.

I agree with anon. Yet I know so many students who are seeminly vocal about the crime in both areas, yet continue to buy 'recreational' drugs, meanwhile failing to see how they contribute to the crime!

There is alot we can do if we really want to make change happen. Contact the ward counsellor and find out how you can help starting with litte initiatives.

With reference to your suggestion to contact the ward Councilor, I have the following comment to make.
Councillor Sharon Sabbagh has been doing "undercover surveillance" for well over a year, taking pictures and videos of dealers, etc, etc, etc. To date I have not witnessed any benefits derived from her "surveillance". A security meeting was held to adress the crime in Melville with some fanciful quotations from various security companies being put forward. It appears that there is a great deal of shortsightedness in adressing the problems in Melville, with no real strategy being placed on the table.
An initiative to deal with the drug dealers in 4th Avenue has been successfully implemented and maintained, with a number of beneficial spin offs. Street children, beggars, loiterers, drunks have disappeared in this part of Melville. The drug dealers at Spar have moved off, or been arrested. (One was shot dead last week) Perhaps the residents and business owners of Melville should be looking at a workable strategy, and be talking to people with an intimate knowledge of the streets of Melville. Take a look at 4th Avenue where the dealers used to operate from, speak to the residents and business owners, and then decide if one should be speaking to a Councilor, who should be concentrating on what she can do best, definately not security issues.