Crime, sports as major players in city's image

LONDON – My city is making headlines.

For the past two weeks, my hometown of Memphis has been in the news, from ESPN.com to Sports Illustrated. A Google search of “Memphis” and “NCAA” turned up 2,927 related articles.

On May 27, the Memphis Commercial Appeal announced that the University of Memphis is responding to NCAA allegations that Memphis’ former star point guard Derrick Rose had someone else take his SAT for him, among other accusations.

But recently, the paper also published statistics that Memphis’ crime rate is dropping.

For a city that Forbes recently named the second-most dangerous in America, the news that crime is declining was a baby step toward safety. For a city whose main source of pride is being accused of cheating, it was a comeback.

It was also hope.

Hope that a group of 680,000 residents can live without fear of their fellow residents. Hope that a city known for the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be known for something – anything – else. Hope that a mayor who has been in power since 1991 – before I even moved to America more than 10 years ago – might be doing something right.

Memphians are used to crime just as they’re used to their college basketball team winning.  

But the team has recently become a fountain of disappointment.

Not only did former coach John Calipari leave for Kentucky, but the possibility that its 2008 Final Four run and national title appearance will be taken away was another blow to a battered psyche.  

While I carry pepper spray when I’m home for protection, no weapon can defend the city’s most popular sports team from spiraling downward.

Memphians agree on few things, but supporting the Tigers is one of them. Every March, the voice of the city fuses into one loud cry for salvation. Last year, former Tiger and current New Jersey Nets guard Chris Douglas-Roberts said, “That town loves basketball so much, and it has been a while since that town had something to be proud of.”

Even though Memphis’ Tigers pride is in danger, their overall pleasure should be in the security of their city. The citizens can take pride in a smaller crime rate, in fewer homicides, in safer streets.

Because unless potential lottery pick Tyreke Evans wants to defend not only the pick-and-roll, but also a woman walking to her car late at night, I don’t think the team will have much effect on the city’s crime rate.

But that’s the effect sports has.  

Cities are not only measured by their safety, but by the successes and failures of their teams. Headlines are often about crime, but equally often about recruitments, transfers and coaching decisions. People care more about what happens inside a stadium for two hours than about whether people can walk freely outside afterward.

But me? I’d rather have fewer wins, but fewer steals.