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Originally Posted by Symz
So Winnipeg was on the news tonight. I never knew that Winnipeg is the homicide capital of the country. I swear sometimes i would think that it's Surrey.
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Metro Vancouver has gang violence. Winnipeg has "gang" violence (as in, "aww, that group of natives thinks its a gang!") and domestic violence. Vancouver is probably more dangerous for bystanders (but still, on a global scale, still a very safe city). Winnipeg is typically only dangerous if you're an impoverished drug addict. Most of the victims have been people caught up in drug addiction, or in troubled relationships. Most murders in Thunder Bay (which has nearly identical demographics to Winnipeg, but on a smaller scale) are committed by spouses against their partners, or between two close friends, and almost always occur in private homes, or in front of them. Bystanders are rarely involved although there is the occasional tragedy. In Thunder Bay, about 90% of crime happens at 5% of addresses. While the crime rate is high, it is also extremely concentrated. Most people are in no danger. Some neighborhoods here have virtually no crime at all. Winnipeg is the same way.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Symz
I think the news said Winnipeg is or is on the way for setting a new record for homicides in 1 year.
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Yes, it is. One case was a drug addict killing five people when she burned down a crack house after getting bad meth, but even discounting that it is still unusually high.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Symz
They did also say that crime in the downtown only represents 5% of that crime. Still it seems like scary stuff.
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Crime in the North End represents about 80% of it. Almost all of those murders have happened within a two square kilometre area. Something like four were on the same block.
Overall, Winnipeg is a very safe city. It just has a neighbourhood with a very high crime rate that casts a shadow over everything.