Thousands Tune In to Learn How Law Enforcement and Communities Can Work Together To Share Gang Prevention Responsibilities
WASHINGTON, DC -- On May 23, more than five thousand individuals from across the nation tuned in to view a free public webcast and satellite broadcast addressing gang prevention in our nation’s communities. Jointly sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the broadcast featured a panel of law enforcement, gang specialists and community leaders who discussed the importance of family, community partnerships and early prevention in the nation’s fight against gang violence. Individuals who missed the live broadcast can view an archived video of the program or read a text transcript by visiting www.DOJConnect.com.
In a taped message, U.S. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales opened the broadcast by highlighting the government’s proactive role in anti-gang efforts. “I’ve made the fight against gangs one of the top priorities of the Department of Justice,” said the Attorney General. “We are working side by side with our federal, state and local partners to reduce gang crime and make our streets safer for every American.” DOJ’s comprehensive anti-gang initiative is focused in key markets including Cleveland, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Tampa, and a corridor of gang activity that stretches from Easton to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, northwest of Philadelphia.
Following this introduction, panel moderator Doris McMillon led four esteemed panelists through an in-depth discussion of gang membership and its traits.
“We may see a lot of kids dressed in the same type of clothing,” said Officer Thomas Jackson of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. “Does that make them a gang? Of course not. One of the things we need to do as law enforcement officers and as a community is identify the difference between a gang and a group of kids who may not have a place to go.”
Jackson and his fellow panelists stressed the importance of understanding the clothing, signs and symbols of various gangs, which are evolving constantly. “Not only may (gangs) not all look the same across the country or within one city, but gangs are dynamic,” said Dr. Scott Decker, chair of the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Arizona State University. “As social circumstances change, the dynamics on the street will change. And those changes will produce the need for a different kind of intervention -- particularly, a different kind of prevention intervention.”
Reverend Melvin Jackson, pastor of the Christian Love Baptist Church in Indianapolis, cited families as an often untapped first line of defense against gang participation. “Virtually everything has its beginning in the home,” said Rev. Jackson. “And parents need to be well acquainted with their children. What are they doing? Who are their friends? What are they bringing into the home? To tell a kid often how much you love and care for him is a very important factor in trying to preclude kids from getting into gangs.”
Dr. Decker agreed that prevention starts in the home, but also highlighted the need for strong community partnerships. “Raising children under the best of circumstances can be a struggle,” he said. “But for a single parent who may be living in a poor neighborhood with fewer resources, this underscores the need for a partnership approach to prevention and intervention that would involve and start in the home, but also would reach out to and include schools and communities and other groups and institutions long before we get down the road to law enforcement and prosecution.”
Panelist Deborah J. Rhodes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama, also advocated community collaboration. “There are several opportunities that the U.S. Attorneys Offices are already involved in that have created strong partnerships with other members of the community,” she said, citing successful initiatives such as Project Safe Neighborhoods, Weed and Seed and local church and civic groups. “They’re the ones who know the needs and issues of their communities, and they’ve already come up with a strategy to try to meet those needs.”
According to the panelists, delivering the anti-gang message to kids when they are young is a key element of prevention that many programs are adopting. For example, Officer Jackson described the G.R.E.A.T. Program (Gang Resistance Education and Training), which has brought successful results in Nashville and in other regions across the country.
The program teaches middle school students how to recognize and avoid gangs. In addition, the G.R.E.A.T. Program features an educational family curriculum, as well as a summer camp component designed to provide positive, alternative activities for students during the summer months.
Dr. Decker confirmed the positive impact of such programs, which aim to reduce gang-related risk factors and increase protective factors. Young people who have siblings that are gang members, or who have already participated in criminal activities are at high risk for gang involvement. Alternatively, mentorship programs and active extra curricular schedules are protective factors that help kids resist the lure of gang membership.
In some instances, community programs can help fill the void for kids who lack nurturing homes. “Every child hungers for structure and real demonstrations of love, care and concern,” said Rev. Jackson. “And kids want discipline. Gangs are very structured, disciplined organizations. And if they don’t get it at home, they’ll go get it someplace else.”
When responding to questions e-mailed by viewers, panel members continued to underscore the fact that prevention starts with strong partnerships between law enforcement and communities.
To get started, Ms. Rhodes advised that “you start with where you are and what you have. Know your neighborhood [and the community groups that already exist there], and then get involved.” And when engaging law enforcement, she recommended that communities “Emphasize prevention. When you prevent a crime, you don’t have a victim, you don’t have a defendant, and you have a safer community.”
Said Dr. Decker, “If you develop a solid understanding of your problem, and craft solid responses that address that problem, building on existing resources, you’re more likely to be successful.”
About DOJ Connect
Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), and produced by L&M Production Design Group, based in Alexandria, VA, the DOJ Connect Webcast and Satellite Series is a free, live, interactive program addressing gang prevention in our nation’s communities. The two-part broadcast series enables viewers to submit questions to expert panelists via e-mail and receive on-air answers. Part One of the series aired live on May 23, and Part Two will be webcast on June 6, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. ET. For additional information, please contact Paul Lamonia at (703) 642-6505 or Lamonia@LMpdg.com, or, visit www.DOJConnect.com. For the next 12 months, archived video and text transcripts of the May 23 webcast -- titled “Preventing Gangs in Our Communities” -- can be accessed at: www.DOJConnect.com.