nypost.com If woke companies really 'care,' let them help where it counts: fighting crime Karol Markowicz 5-6 minutes May 16, 2021 | 6:49pm | Updated May 16, 2021 | 6:49pm Enlarge Image Violent crime is rising and wouldn't it be nice if Corporate America spoke out against it, writes Karol Markowicz. Violent crime is rising and wouldn't it be nice if Corporate America spoke out against it, writes Karol Markowicz. EPA Imagine if instead of launching woke public-relations campaigns, big corporations went to bat for an issue that’s taking a real toll on the nation: violent crime. They might actually make a difference. Crime is spiking nationwide at the same time companies are trying to lure employees back to the office. Yet they remain all-too-silent on a problem they could help solve. We’ve all seen the ads. Corporations “care”: “We share your values. So we’re weighing in on Issue X. We’re here to prove we care. And that’s why you should spend more money with us.” The issues run the gamut. Sprite, owned by Coca-Cola, lectures that the American dream “wasn’t made for everybody,” since it forgot “black America.” The company wants us to buy Sprite to stop “hate.” Procter & Gamble launched a “Wash away the hate” program urging people to film themselves washing their hands and sharing a personal experience involving racism. P&G, of course, manufactures dozens of soap products to assist with hand-washing. Companies want to let us know they care about guns. CEOs at Bloomberg and Condé Nast signed a letter in support of gun control. They want to fight racism and sexism. Uber put up a billboard asking racists to delete the company’s app. Apple featured Lady Gaga, Megan Rapinoe and Marie Kondo in an ad meant to show it cares about women. Sprite spoke about race relations last summer. Sprite spoke about race relations last summer. Igor Golovniov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Big Biz is also concerned about the Earth. Pretty much every big company has made a “We love the environment” Earth Day ad urging us to be better stewards of the planet. Yet none of these companies is producing ads demanding a crackdown on violent crime, one of America’s most horrific problems right now. These corporations have no hesitations about trying to influence policy, it seems, except when it comes to stopping murder. No company is threatening to boycott a city if it doesn’t get its homicide rate under control. On Friday, at least two men went on “a slashing spree” on New York City’s subways, sending five people to the hospital. This kind of violence has been rampant, particularly on our public transportation. So where were the CEOs of Bloomberg and Condé Nast? Where was their letter demanding more funds for cops? Where were the PR departments of corporations that are based in the city? Condé Nast has previously been in support of gun control. Condé Nast has previously been in support of gun control. Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images Buildings sitting empty across Manhattan will be much harder to fill if people are afraid to get on the subway. Companies bloviate about their woke corporate policies but never mention the actual danger around them. New York City had 468 homicides in 2020, a 41 percent spike over the previous year. There were 1,531 shootings, 97 percent more than in 2019. We’re on track to surpass those numbers in 2021. New York isn’t the only city suffering. In Procter & Gamble’s home base of Cincinnati, murders were up 22 percent in 2020, with reportedly more slayings per capita than Chicago. Where’s the P&G initiative to fight that? Two NYPD officers patrol the Morgan Ave L Subway Station in Brooklyn. Two NYPD officers patrol the Morgan Ave L Subway Station in Brooklyn. J.C. Rice In Atlanta, home of Coca-Cola, homicides this year are up 60 percent over 2020 at this point, even though 2020 saw the most murders in two decades. How much of Coca-Cola’s ad budget is urging action? Silicon Valley, home of politically motivated companies like Apple and Uber, openly ignored the Bay Area’s 35 percent murder spike last year. These firms can do a lot to effect change in their home regions if they wanted to. They can demand more policing. They can spend money on mental-health facilities. They can fund better street lights, which have been shown to reduce crime, and cameras in hot spots to identify assailants faster. They can speak up on the issue again and again so politicians know it matters. Instead, they’re putting out slickly produced TV commercials telling us they “care” about abstract, often loony issues. The NYC subway has seen a wave of crime in recent days. The NYC subway has seen a wave of crime in recent days. Paul Martinka Enough with the wokeness; let’s see some action where it counts. If corporations want to show us their values, they should put their money where their loud mouths have been and help fight our crime epidemic.