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# Gaslighting the Public While Crime Persists: Los Angeles Deserves Honest Leadership
March 09 2026
Written by Shoshannah Kalaydjian.
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A STUDENT'S PERSPECTIVE - Public trust is the most important currency any elected official possesses. Once that trust is eroded, the ability to govern effectively begins to collapse. In Los Angeles today, many residents feel that trust slipping away as Mayor Karen Bass and her administration continue to downplay the seriousness of crime while communities across the city experience the consequences firsthand.
As a young Jewish student who cares deeply about the future of Los Angeles, I believe students and young people also have a responsibility to speak up when we see a growing gap between what leaders say and what communities are experiencing on the ground. Jewish tradition teaches that safeguarding human life and protecting our communities must always come first, and those principles shape how many of us view the responsibility of public leadership.
For months, Angelenos have been told that their concerns about crime are exaggerated. Officials point to statistics suggesting improvement, while residents are told the situation is not as bad as it may seem. But statistics do not walk our streets people do.
Small business owners across the San Fernando Valley report repeated break-ins and theft. Families worry about their children walking home from school. Seniors increasingly feel unsafe leaving their homes after dark. These are not political talking points; they are daily realities for many Angelenos.
When leaders respond to these concerns by suggesting that public fear is misplaced or overstated, it creates the perception that residents are being gaslighted that their lived experiences somehow do not reflect reality. Nothing damages public trust faster than when citizens feel their voices are dismissed.
Compassion and accountability are not opposing ideas. In fact, they must work together. Programs that address homelessness, addiction, and poverty are necessary and important, but they cannot replace the fundamental responsibility of government to ensure that neighborhoods remain safe.
Critics argue that Los Angeles has increasingly blurred the line between compassion and permissiveness. When individuals involved in violent crime or organized gang activity face weak enforcement or inconsistent accountability, the message to law-abiding residents becomes deeply troubling.
Communities that have long suffered from gang violence understand this better than anyone. They know that ignoring criminal behavior in the name of ideology does not help vulnerable neighborhoods it abandons them.
For many Angelenos, the gap between official messaging and daily experience has grown too wide to ignore.
This disconnect is particularly concerning as Los Angeles prepares for major global events such as the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The world will soon turn its attention to our city, but visitors will judge Los Angeles not by press conferences or political messaging, but by what they see and experience on the ground.
Leadership requires honesty. It requires acknowledging problems even when doing so may be politically inconvenient. Most importantly, it requires listening to the people who live in the communities most affected by those problems.
Los Angeles is a resilient city filled with hardworking families, students, entrepreneurs, and community leaders who care deeply about their neighborhoods. Residents are not asking for miracles. They are asking for something far more basic: honesty, accountability, and leadership that places public safety at the center of city governance.
When residents raise concerns about crime, they are not attacking the city they love they are trying to protect it.
Students like myself want to inherit a city that is safe, honest, and accountable. As a young Jewish student who cares deeply about the future of Los Angeles and the safety of its communities, I believe our city deserves leadership that listens to its residents and confronts reality with honesty and courage.
Los Angeles deserves better.
*(**Shoshannah Kalaydjian** is a young Jewish student who writes about education, identity, and the challenges facing the next generation. Growing up in today’s climate, she has witnessed firsthand how rising antisemitism affects young people in classrooms and on college campuses. Shoshannah is committed to sharing the perspectives of Jewish youth, amplifying student voices, and encouraging leaders to create safer, more inclusive environments for all students.)*
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