Growing up as a young boy I lived on the east side of Detroit which was on East Warren and Bewick Street. As you walked down the beginning of my street, to the right side of the block you would see a sign which told a person our block was patrolled by a neighborhood watch group. A neighborhood watch was a group of men who came together on behalf of the neighborhood to monitor and take care of their community. These men were ordinary people who had regular jobs during the day but in the evening they would patrol the local streets until everyone when into their homes at night. Back then there was no such thing as people hanging out late at night because when the street lights came on all the kids and parents made their way into the house. You would sometimes see the men riding around in their vehicles, helping to prevent fights among the kids, or contacting the local police when someone was in of life-threatening situation. The men who were a part of the neighborhood watch were not a part of law enforcement but they believed that their presence represented to potential evil-doers that no type of crime, drugs or the burglary of homes would be permitted in their community.
Walter Strong III 