Over the years, Dayton has gained an unfortunate reputation for being a dangerous city due to drug and opioid use. Despite its rich history and culture, the stereotypes the Gem City has been subjected to continue to overshadow its wonderful past.
If you look at the rate of crime in the Dayton area it looks to confirm the stereotypes. Though the crime rate may be lower than you think. The Dayton area according to www.Crimegrade.org Dayton is “ in the 24th percentile for safety meaning 76% of cities are safer and 24% are more dangerous,” but we still rank lower than Canton, Toledo, and Cleveland on the crime rate list.
Dayton is slowly becoming less known for its crime rate and the drugs in the area and again known for its history for example being the birthplace of aviation. This is where the Wright brothers invented and flew the first aircraft. When asked what our city is most known for fellow Daytonian Grace Lewis said,
“I think we are most known for our aviation. That’s what we are recognized for as well as our downtown being historical with most of our oldest historical buildings still standing to this day,”.
The first railroad was built to connect Dayton to Springfield, then the rest of the country. In addition to historical events, plenty of things were invented in the area such as the self-starting ignition for vehicles, the cash register, and the pop top beverage.
When asked how Dayton’s reputation can improve, Lewis said, “Instead of building new buildings we should repair the ones that can still be repaired, instead of building new ones because there are other buildings that we can make use of instead of building entirely new buildings. In this we can continue to make history in these buildings if we reuse them instead of just tearing them down.”
Let’s continue to remember our city for its advancements and come together as a community to take down the crime and drug rate in our city and help our neighbors whether that be lending an ear or a helping hand what will get us through with commodity and love and kindness and to remember how far we have come and grown and developed as a community.
Breanna Gambill
Intern