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Parenting
Resources for the 21st Century:
You Can Get out!! For
most gang members, the gang they belong to meets some kind of need in their
life: for safety, love, excitement or money. When a gang member
learns that he or she can meet these needs in other ways, the gang may
lose its appeal, and this person may decide to walk away from the gang
life. However, being a gang member is far more dangerous than
the typical dangers faced by most of today's teenagers. For that
reason, the issue for many gang members is not if they will decide to stop
being a gang member. The issue is whether they will live long enough
to make that decision.
When
gang members decide that they want to leave the gang, there are a few simple
steps they can follow: Never tell the gang that you plan to leave.
You may be beaten or even killed.
Try to stop looking like a gangster. For many gang members, dressing down makes them feel safe because other people are afraid of the way they look. As you begin to believe in yourself, you will find that you don't need to make other people feel afraid in order to feel good about yourself. Stop wearing the clothes that you think have a gang meaning. Find other things to say, other things to do, and other people to do them with. (HINT: This is much easier if you stop dressing like a gang member first.) Stop hanging out with gang members, talking like a gang member, and acting like a gang member. Get good at making excuses. Your parents can probably help you with this, but if not, try asking a teacher for help or maybe just an older friend. Some former gang members have said that when they started trying to leave the gang, they stopped taking phone calls from their gang friends, or had their family members tell friends from the gang that they were busy or involved in some other activity. Find people who will support you and believe in you Getting out of a gang isn't easy, but it can be done. Young people across America make the decision to have a better life every day. Find people, especially adults, who think that you are special and will keep telling you that. In your mind, think of a supportive adult wherever you go (school, neighborhood, rec center) that you can touch base with if you have a problem or need to talk. Then use these people to help support you as you change with good advice and assistance. Finally, begin believing in your power to change. Gangs are a dead-end street. No matter who you are, what you have done, or where you live, you deserve better.
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Youth Gang Consortium Survey of Federal Gang Programs Forward by: Shay Bilchik
Office of Juvenile Justice
In recent years, the United States
has witnessed the rapid growth of youth gangs and associated violence.
As a Nation, we have come to recognize that there are no simple solutions
to the youth gang problem. There is an urgent need in gang-ridden neighborhoods
to mobilize the creative energies of the entire community in a comprehensive
campaign to identify the nature and extent of the youth gang problem, to
prevent at-risk youth from joining gangs, to intervene with gang-involved
youth to redirect their lives on a positive course, to suppress gang-related
crime, and to respond to the needs of gang-related crime victims and witnesses.
The most promising gang initiatives are those which strategically engage the talents of the full spectrum of community including youth and adult residents, educators, social workers, mental health practitioners, youth workers, business leaders, and the faith community in concert with the more traditional juvenile justice components of police, courts, and corrections. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has convened the Youth Gang Consortium to engage Federal, state, and local representatives in a collaborative dialogue targeting the reduction of violence and other crime associated with youth gangs. This Survey of Gang Programs provides an overview of current Federal initiatives addressing gang-related concerns through demonstration programs, research, technical assistance, and training. We are pleased to make this information available to the public through the Internet Web page at the National Youth Gang Center, located at the following address: Future efforts of the Youth Gang Consortium will focus on providing more in-depth descriptions of effective program strategies which are currently being implemented in jurisdictions across the Nation. The Youth Gang Consortium is committed to amassing the tools needed by local communities to successfully turn the tide against the escalation of gang activity and the violence which accompanies it. |
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OJJDP Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse
Gang
Resources:
NYGC National
Youth Gang Center:
IIR provides local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies with the hands-on help needed to implement changes that promote greater governmental effectiveness. Comprehensive
Approach to Youth Gangs:
Parenting Resources for the 21st Century: Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention The
Department of Health and Human Services
NAGIA: The National Alliance of Gang Investigators' Associations (NAGIA) was formed in 1998. It is a cooperative organization currently composed of representatives from 17 regional gang investigators associations representing over 15,000 gang investigators across the country, as well as federal agencies and other organizations involved in gang-related matters. The NAGIA is a unique alliance of criminal justice professionals dedicated to the promotion and coordination of national anti-gang strategies. The NAGIA also advocates the standardization of anti-gang training, establishment of uniform gang definitions, assistance for communities with emerging gang problems, and input to policymakers and program administrators. The NAGIA is not meant to replace or duplicate the services provided by any other entity. Rather, it facilitates and supports regional gang investigators associations, the Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS), as well as federal, state and local anti-gang initiatives. National Major Gang Task Force (NMGTF): The mission of the National Major Gang Task Force (NMGTF) is to display leadership in linking all 50 states correctional systems, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, major jails, law enforcement and probation and parole offices throughout the country. This will be accomplished by the development of a National Correction Informational Sharing System. This has not changed since the Task Force's inception. Strategic goals and objectives of the NMGTF include networking, training, and the establishment of information sharing standards with regard to Gangs and Security Threat Group management in correctional settings. The NMGTF also recognizes that the courts and the community have a reasonable expectation that corrections will display leader in protecting the community and fulfilling the mandates of the courts. The NMGTF has been nationally recognized in the criminal justice system for achieving uniqueness in gang intervention and management strategies. The integration and partnerships between corrections and law enforcement has resulted in obtaining successful state criminal indictments and Federal Racketeer Influence Corrupt Organization (RICO) prosecutions with multiple defendants. In addition the NMGTF Executive Board members have provided valuable technical assistance in the development of state-wide Gang/Security Threat Group programs in numerous jurisdictions. The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA): BJA's mission to reduce crime and improve the criminal justice system begins in local communities. We have learned that no one program or agency can make our streets and schools safe–the most powerful weapon against crime and violence is collaboration among community residents, faith-based organizations, schools, businesses, and the criminal justice system on specific local problems. National Citizens' Crime Prevention Campaign: National Crime Prevention Council National in scope but local in implementation, the National Citizens' Crime Prevention Campaign will continue to reach out to youth, families, public and private service providers, and elected officials to reduce and prevent crime, violence, and substance abuse and build safer, more caring communities. The Campaign promotes and teaches prevention as an effective method to reduce crime. The Campaign's award-winning public service message featuring McGruff the Crime Dog uses print, broadcast, and telecast formats to challenge Americans to do something about crime and violence. The Campaign provides training and technical assistance to community leaders on a wide variety of crime prevention topics, develops programs in areas such as comprehensive government and grassroots crime prevention planning partnerships, promotes crime prevention though environmental design, and organizes youth violence prevention activities. In FY 2000, the Campaign will continue to develop comprehensive, community-based approaches to reducing crime and fear of crime. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP): The principal purpose of ONDCP is to establish policies, priorities, and objectives for the Nation's drug control program, the goals of which are to reduce illicit drug use, manufacturing, and trafficking; drug-related crime and violence; and drug-related health consequences. To achieve these goals, the Director of ONDCP is charged with producing the National Drug Control Strategy, which directs the Nation's anti-drug efforts and establishes a program, a budget, and guidelines for cooperation among Federal, State, and local entities. The Boys and Girls Clubs of America: In every community, boys and girls are left to find their own recreation and companionship in the streets. An increasing number of children are at home with no adult care or supervision. Young people need to know that someone cares about them. Boys & Girls Clubs offer that and more. Club programs and services promote and enhance the development of boys and girls by instilling a sense of competence, usefulness, belonging and influence. Boys & Girls Clubs are a safe place to learn and grow -- all while having fun. It is truly The Positive Place For Kids. Police
Atheletic League (PAL): To foster and encourage in the youth of the
community a spirit of loyalty and faith in American traditions and institutions;
to participate actively in constructive movements and endeavors for the
promotion and safeguarding of the interests and general welfare of the
youth of the community; to promote the spirit of benevolence, friendship,
sociability, good-will and tolerance amongst the youth of the community;
to cultivate and improve the moral and civic standards of the youth of
the community; to provide a meeting place or meeting places where youth
of the community may enjoy educational and social benefits and athletic
activities under competent supervision; to prevent and combat juvenile
delinquency; to acquire, lease, hold, use, mortgage and dispose of real
and personal property to carry out the purposes of the Corporation; to
do any and all other things lawful and proper in the promotion of the common
interest of the youth of the community; and in general, to have all powers
conferred upon a corporation by the laws of the State of New York except
as herein prohibited or forbidden by the Constitution and By-Laws of the
Corporation.
How
can Schools and Communities fight gangs?
Police expertise can benefit schools. In Chicago, police have trained 6,000 teachers to identify gang behaviors. Milwaukee school administrators and police meet periodically to exchange information on gang activities. Police can also train school staff to handle armed or violent youths (Stover). In many communities, schools have joined law enforcement, judicial, and civil authorities to create coordinated anti-gang programs, such as the Philadelphia Crisis Intervention Network and the Chicago Intervention Network. School boards in Pasadena and Compton, California, have invited the Los Angeles Community Youth Gang Services "to conduct weekly seminars for fourth, fifth, and sixth graders on the dangers of becoming involved with a street gang" (Stover). The NSSC lists a number of successful school and community programs, some preventive in nature. Sometimes anti-gang efforts go beyond the community. In 1985, Illinois passed legislation increasing penalties for distribution or sale of weapons and drugs within 1,000 feet of school property. New Jersey recently established similar safe-school zones (Tursman). Even comprehensive efforts may be unable to eliminate gangs. But school officials can take steps to control gang activity within their sphere, and they can make valuable contributions to reducing the problem in their communities. (Some
of the excerps above are from:
The following is taken from:
Effective drug prevention programs are long term, comprehensive, and designed to prevent use of any category of illicit drugs. They include a wide array of components rather than a single strategy or curriculum. For example, a comprehensive, community-based prevention program includes components for individuals, families, schools, the media, health care providers, law enforcement officials, and other community agencies and organizations. Prevention programs should be geared to specific audiences and should recognize the specific needs, resource levels, and infrastructure of each community. In the case of methamphetamine, demographic data collection is incomplete, but current information shows that methamphetamine users include more whites and females and on average are older than other drug users. The Task Force recognizes that methamphetamine is changing the population of drug users; as the demographics of users change, prevention and education efforts should be tailored accordingly. The most effective school and community prevention programs are comprehensive and involve a broad range of components, including teaching social competence and drug resistance skills, promoting positive peer influences and antidrug social norms, emphasizing skills-training teaching methods, and providing multiple years of intervention. In addition, research-based approaches for implementing drug prevention programs include targeting salient risk and protective factors in the specific community, using principles of prevention research, and using a proven prevention program. Research has shown that methamphetamine users are generally exposed to elevated levels of risk factors. Programs targeting risk and protective factors seek to reduce risk factors and enhance protective factors. Risk factors include, but are not limited to, the availability of drugs, low neighborhood attachment and community disorganization, family conflict and management problems, favorable parental attitudes toward and involvement in substance abuse, early and antisocial behavior, academic failure beginning in late elementary school, friends who engage in substance abuse, and early initiation in substance abuse. Protective factors include, but are not limited to, family and school bonds, healthy beliefs and expectations, and social and academic competence. In order to target the average age of onset of drug use, a comprehensive, school-based prevention program should engage children from kindergarten through high school, or at least through the middle school or junior high school years. School-based programs should not only involve parents, but should also collaborate with community organizations and programs. Similarly, a comprehensive community prevention program is long term, involves different segments of the community in development and implementation, and is accessible to various audiences. Ideally, community prevention programs should include cross-disciplinary training so that prevention and education, treatment, and law enforcement officials can share their knowledge and build stronger programs. If the initiation of any drug use, including methamphetamine use, can be prevented by using a proven prevention program, how do practitioners, policymakers, and community members develop such a program? More methamphetamine research is needed, including research on the initiation to and progression of use. Although research exists on what works with respect to primary drug prevention programs, more information is needed about programs that include methamphetamine in the targeted drug categories. Identification of such programs and evaluation of the extent to which they have had a specific impact on methamphetamine use are also needed. Researchers also need more data on methamphetamine users, including demographics and ethnography, their motivations, and the risk factors that lead to use of methamphetamine and other drugs. In particular, specific data on methamphetamine use among adolescents are needed, such as their motivations, risk factors, and attitudes toward methamphetamine use. Meeting methamphetamine research needs presents the opportunity to develop better systems for data collection. Researchers can use what has been and will be learned from this experience to continue to modify existing systems and incorporate new tools for gathering information. Following are the guiding principles related to prevention and education. Guiding Principles Effective drug prevention requires
the involvement of many segments of the community—e.g., educators, youths,
parents, law enforcement officials, business leaders, members of the faith
community, social services providers, and representatives of other community
agencies and organizations.
Methamphetamine prevention and
education efforts should follow established prevention principles and should
be part of broader prevention and education efforts that target all forms
of drug use.
It is important to clearly identify target populations, motivations, risk factors, and demographics to design prevention and education strategies that are tailored to address the specific needs of local communities, recognizing the multigenerational characteristics associated with methamphetamine manufacturing. Prevention programs should be age-specific, developmentally appropriate, and culturally sensitive. Also, they need to be tailored to meet the needs of specific subpopulations at risk for drug use and designed to address the specific nature of the drug use problem in any given community, including workplace programs that incorporate awareness, testing, and treatment components. The higher the target population's level of risk, the more intensive the prevention effort must be and the earlier it must begin. Prevention and education programs
should be guided by research and evaluation findings.
Prevention and education programs
should be evaluated to determine effectiveness.
Parents and other adults should participate in any prevention or education programs designed for youths. Prevention programs that focus on youths should include a parents' or caregivers' component that reinforces what the youths are learning—such as what they perceive to be the personal consequences of drug use (one characteristic of methamphetamine seems to be the lack of perceived negative effects)—and that opens opportunities for family discussions about the use of legal and illegal substances and family policies about their use. Prevention programs can enhance protective factors among young children by teaching parents about better family communication, discipline, rulemaking, and other parenting skills. Research has shown that parents should take an active role in their children's lives: talking with them about drugs, monitoring their activities, knowing their friends, and understanding their problems and personal concerns. Community methamphetamine efforts
should target both youths and new adult users.
Needs and Recommendations Following are needs and recommendations related to prevention and education programs, based on the previous guiding principles: Address methamphetamine through broad-based drug prevention and education efforts that target all forms of drug use and that are based on research and established prevention principles. Develop science-based prevention program planning and intervention guidelines in communities where methamphetamine is already a problem. Involve the entire community in prevention efforts, including educators, youths, parents, vendors of the materials used in the manufacture of methamphetamine, law enforcement officials, business leaders, members of the faith community, social services providers, and representatives of other government agencies and organizations. Identify the changing population characteristics of users, their motivations, risk factors, and demographics. Involve parents and other adults in prevention and education programs for youths, particularly in the areas of monitoring for latchkey status children, enhancing parent-child communication skills, and providing consistent family/home rules for youths' behavior and leisure time activities. Ensure that media campaigns proceed with caution, focusing on raising awareness of methamphetamine using messages designed to minimize unintended effects, such as arousing curiosity about methamphetamine. Develop or augment programs aimed
at educating those communities in which methamphetamine is an emerging
or chronic problem.
Following are the priorities for research initiatives to raise knowledge about prevention and education strategies: Examine existing methamphetamine prevention and education strategies that are included in broad prevention programs targeting all forms of drug use and determine the extent to which they have been effective. Support research on the initiation to methamphetamine use as well as the progression of use leading to addiction. Collect additional data on the
extent of methamphetamine use, focusing on a number of areas (e.g., adolescent
use, prevalence in rural and tribal areas) and continue to develop and
build on existing databases, making them more sensitive to local communities.
The National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC): The National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC), established in 1993, is a component of the U.S. Department of Justice and a member of the Intelligence Community. The General Counterdrug Intelligence Plan, signed by the President in February 2000, designated NDIC as the nation's principal center for strategic domestic counterdrug intelligence. NDIC has the following mission: To support national policymakers and law enforcement with strategic domestic drug intelligence To support Intelligence Community counterdrug efforts To produce national, regional, and state drug threat assessments A
Guide to Gang Prevention for Parents
Whether you realize it or not, your children can be at risk to join gangs. The reasons that kids join gangs are complex and varied. However, as a parent, you have a lot more power to keep your children from joining gangs than you may think. The time to begin is now, whether your child is 5, 10, or 15 years old. YOUR CHILDREN NEED GOOD SOCIAL
SKILLS
Honest communication. Children need to learn to express feelings such as anger, joy, love, and fear. They must believe it is okay for them to express these feelings without being teased or punished. Since children learn by example, you also must express your feelings honestly. Be a good listener. This helps teach your children to be good listeners, too. Cooperation. Children must learn to cooperate, negotiate, and put themselves in another person's shoes. Practice by talking about what TV programs to watch or where to go on vacation. Praise your children for cooperating, especially when they are able to work out a compromise. Personal responsibility. Teach your children to be responsible for their actions. Give them family jobs for which they are responsible. Make sure they are able to handle the tasks. Gradually increase their responsibilities. Let them know that even if they do not get it right at first, what counts is that they are trying hard and learning from experience. Ability to make decisions. Instead of solving problems for your children, give them chances to think about solutions for the problem. Help them think about the choices they have, and the consequences for each choice. Ability to give and receive unconditional love. Love your children for who they are, regardless of what they do or how well they do in school, sports, or other activities. Even if you are angry at them, let them know that you still love and respect them. Help your children learn that they can feel angry at someone and still love them. YOUR CHILDREN NEED A BALANCE
BETWEEN LOVE AND DISCIPLINE
Spend time alone with each child. It doesn't matter what you do, as long as it helps you get to know each other better. Plan family time. Make time for your family to play, eat meals together, and take trips (even to local parks or activities), keep family traditions, and have family meetings to talk about plans, feelings, and complaints. Listen to your children and ask their opinions. Help your children talk with you without fear of punishment. Even 5-year-olds have a lot to offer if you give them a chance. Do not talk down to your children. Even though adults are older, children's thoughts and feelings deserve respect. Talk to your children about ways to deal with pressure from friends. Help your children make up some simple ways to respond to peer pressure. For example, if your child is challenged by a peer who says, "If you are my friend, you would," your child can respond, "If you were my friend, you wouldn't ask." Then, he/she should walk away. Set firm limits with your children and teens. Set a few simple rules in your home. Children and teenagers need to know clearly what is expected of them, and the consequences for acting otherwise. Do not rescue your children from the consequences of their decisions. TEACH YOUR CHILDREN ABOUT THE
DANGERS OF GANGS
Do not allow your children to dress in gang-style clothing. Explain to your children that these clothing items can put them in danger, and that you will not purchase them or allow them to be worn. If you are not familiar with these items, contact your local police department for more specific information about gangs in your area. Point out violent messages on television and in movies. Violence is not a solution for problems. Talk to your children about ways that they can solve their problems without fighting or violence. Demonstrate these strategies in your own life. Get to know your child's friends and the friends' parents. Be aware of their attitudes towards drugs, alcohol, and gangs. When children start to feel pressure to use drugs or join gangs, it usually comes from their friends. Start educating your children at an early age. While 5-year-olds may not understand about the effects of joining a gang, they can learn to say "no" to negative behavior. Give your kids consistent messages about the negative consequences of gang activities. Teach your children about recreational activities that they will enjoy, as well as hobbies and interests. These things can replace gangs as something for kids to do. Information adapted by the Salt Lake Area Gang Project, Salt Lake City, UT. Table of Contents The Site Fights Anti-Gang Website What are gangs and how are they formed? Why do kids join gangs? How can I tell if my child is in a gang? Common Myths About Gangs: Get the Truth Gang Prevention and Intervention |