Youth Gangs: Issues, Concerns and Promising Strategies

1. Youth Gangs: Issues, Concerns and Promising Strategies Gregory Owens, LMSW 2011

2. “The Chief Problem In Any Community Cursed With Crime Is Not The Punishment Of The Criminals, But The Preventing Of The Young From Being Trained To Crime.” -W.E.B. Du Bois- Gregory Owens, LMSW

3. New YorkGang members indicted in connection with "hit" (Kingston, NY): Seven members of the Sex, Money, Murder Gang and their associates were indicted by an Ulster County grand jury on eight counts in connection with theretaliation murder of a fellow gang member, who they thought was a snitch.Source: Mid-Hudson News    Date: April 2, 2010http://www.midhudsonnews.com/...New York21-year-old shot to death in Newburgh (Newburgh, NY): A 21-year-old man was shot and killed, likely for revenge, Friday night, capping a 24-hour spate of gang violence that police said was among the bloodiest in Newburgh's history. Source: Times Herald-Record    Date: March 14, 2010http://www.recordonline.com/...New YorkPolice, ATF pick up gang members (Niagara Falls, NY): Two gang members being sought in connection with the recent rash of violence in the city were picked up Monday and Tuesday by Falls police. Source: Niagara Gazette    Date: March 17, 2010http://niagara-gazette.com/...http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Gang-Related-News Gregory Owens, LMSW

4. Who Can We Learn From? • Those who successfully avoided recruitment efforts. • Those who joined and were able to get out. • Those who are still involved. • Family of all three groups! Gregory Owens, LMSW

5. A brief history of gangs A.D. 350-430 St. Augustine wrote in his confessions of the pleasure of stealing pears in the company of his adolescent accomplices: “My pleasure was not in those pears, it was in the offense itself, which the company of fellow sinners occasioned.” Records of life in 17th century London mention youth gangs who terrorized the citizenry by breaking windows, destroying taverns and fighting, each group wearing different colored ribbons. www.nationalgangcenter.gov/ Gregory Owens, LMSW

6. National Youth Gang Center (2009). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved from http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Survey-Analysis Gregory Owens, LMSW

7. National Youth Gang Center (2009). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved from http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Survey-Analysis Gregory Owens, LMSW

8. National Youth Gang Center (2009). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved from http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Survey-Analysis Gregory Owens, LMSW

9. Who are Gang Members? “Human Beings. They are someone’s son, daughter, sister, brother, husband, wife, etc. This is a simple notion that is often forgotten. It is a key notion to treatment.” Lisa Taylor Austin – Gang Expert at 2004 NYS Gang Summit http://www.gangcolors.com Gregory Owens, LMSW

10. Elements Necessary For A Group To Be Considered A Gang • 3 or more members. • Members are generally between 12 and 24 years old. • Members share a sense of identity. • Some permanence - generally a year or more. • Criminal activity is a central element of the group. Gregory Owens, LMSW

11. Theory Klein • “Street gangs are an amalgam of racism, of urban underclass poverty, of minority and youth culture, of fatalism in the face of rampant deprivation, of political insensitivity and the gross ignorance of inner-city (and inner-town) America on the part of most of us who don’t have to survive there.” Hagedorn, Klein and Jackson • Gangs are a product of postindustrial development. Thrasher • Structural and community factors are important. Delinquency/gangs are the product of social environment. Gregory Owens, LMSW

12. Five Domains • Individual and Personal Attributes • Family Demographics • Peer Group • School • Community Gregory Owens, LMSW

13. Individual and Family

14. Peers, Peer Group and School Gregory Owens, LMSW

15. Community and Neighborhood Gregory Owens, LMSW

16. Risk and Protective Factors • Cumulative Impact • More research needed Gregory Owens, LMSW

17. Other Factors • Identity • Affiliation • Attachment • Stability • Adolescence!! Gregory Owens, LMSW

18. Gangs In Schools For Consideration School Specific Strategies Target students most vulnerable to gang recruitment. Establish mentoring programs. Establish moral and ethical educational programs. Offer educational programs for students about gangs. Provide regular opportunities for students to discuss their experiences in school. • Schools can camouflage the impact of the presence of gangs. • Gangs in schools can increase tension and the level of violence. • Gangs can increase the presence of drugs in schools. • Schools are impacted by violence spilling over from the community. • Schools are becoming centers for gang activity. • Gangs can spread from school to school (implications for suspension, discipline and other policies). Gregory Owens, LMSW

19. Impact Strategies • Intervention • Suppression • The National Education Association • Prevention • Secondary prevention • Early intervention Gregory Owens, LMSW

20. A Schematic of Prevention, Intervention, Suppression, and Comprehensive Programs. Some risk (sometimes minimal) exists (e.g., local youth are at risk for joining street gangs; there is a risk for street gangs to emerge and/or grow in a particular geographic location) Risk has manifested into an actual problem (e.g., the emergence and continuation of local street gangs; increased gang membership and violence among local youth) Prevention Programs Intervention and Suppression Programs Tend to be law enforcement based; focus on suppressing gangs and gang activity Attempt to prevent gang membership, gang crime and/or gang emergence/growth Tend to have a social service orientation; focus on re-integrating gang members into the community Comprehensive Programs These programs combine interventions and suppression techniques, as well as (at times) prevention tactics; necessitate collaboration among numerous agencies and groups. Jean M. McGloin www.cops.usdoj.gov

21. Extraction/Exiting Issues • Very serious and can be dangerous • Must be done by trained and talented people • Requires a process and extensive networking • Must include family, faith and community based resources as well as law enforcement • Highly individualized and confidential strategies Gregory Owens, LMSW

22. Action Steps • Be Aware. • Be willing to accept the truth that youth gangs exist and can be dangerous. • Be analytical; determine the facts. • Be open to the facts. • Plan based upon the facts and not what you want the reality to be. • Make this an agency/organization priority. • Develop this as an agency initiative. • Seek support from all staff and select youth. • Assign a full time staff member to manage the initiative. • Seek training from recognized expert(s). • Include parents if possible. Gregory Owens, LMSW

23. Action Steps, cont. • Develop an agency policy about youth gangs. • Define in specific language what “zero tolerance” means (most ZT Policies are not working). • Include language that places a focus on prevention, intervention and community involvement . • Learn what you need to know. • Begin to recognize the signs of gang activity. • Begin to look at incidents through a new lens (examine the possibility that a group incident is gang related). Gregory Owens, LMSW

24. Action Steps, cont. • Develop a forum for youth to talk about the issue. • Make this a part of the discussion as you engage in treatment and counseling. • Document gang activities and behaviors that happen in the program. • Develop a database of information based on what you can document. Gregory Owens, LMSW

25. Learn What You Need To Know • Know the current recruitment methods. • Know current initiation rituals. • Identify areas where gangs could gain an appearance of power and control. • Differentiate various levels of affiliation and involvement. Gregory Owens, LMSW

26. OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Strategy: One Gang Intervention Strategy • Community mobilization • Provision of academic, economic & social opportunities • Social intervention • Gang suppression • Organizational change & development http://www.iir.com/nygc/tool/ Gregory Owens, LMSW

27. Closing Thoughts • There is no single clear solution to preventing or reducing gang activity. • Juveniles do not join gangs for life. • More girls are joining gangs and engaging in violent delinquent behavior. • Gangs are not solely an inner city phenomenon, or comprised of youth of color. Youth gang members come from a variety of backgrounds. • A comprehensive approach, using prevention, suppression and intervention strategies will be most effective. Gregory Owens, LMSW

28. General ReferencesAsbury, H. 1970 [1927]. The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the Underworld. New York: Capricorn Books.Covey, H. C., Menard, S., & Franzese, R. J., eds. (1997). Juvenile Gangs, 2nd edition. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas. Klein, M. & Maxson, C. (2006). Street Gang Patterns and Policies. New York: Oxford University Press. Jankowski, M. S. (1991). Islands in the Street: Gangs and American Urban Society. Berkeley: University of California Press.Schneider, E. C. (1999). Vampires, Dragons, and Egyptian Kings: Youth Gangs in Postwar New York. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Spergel, I. A. (1990). Youth Gangs: Continuity and Change. Crime and Justice, 12. Thrasher, F. M. (1947 [1927]). The Gang: A Study of 1,313 Gangs in Chicago. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Gregory Owens, LMSW

29. Resources for Action Steps Guide to Assessing Gang Problem: http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Content/Documents/Assessment-Guide/Assessment-Guide.pdf Gang Prevention: An Overview of Research and Programs http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/231116.pdf New York Gang Investigators Association http://www.nygia.org/ History of gangs in America National Gang Center www.nationalgangcenter.gov/ Gregory Owens, LMSW

30. Was this presentation useful? Please give us your feedback: • http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22AEZWMYJH3 • The ACT for Youth Center of Excellence connects positive youth development resources and research to practice in New York State and beyond. The Center provides: • Technical support, training, and evaluation for youth-serving programs funded by the NYS Department of Health. • Youth Development resources: www.actforyouth.net, publications, and narrated presentations, and the e-letter ACT for Youth Update. Subscribe at http://www.actforyouth.net/publications/update.cfm • A home base for the ACT Youth Network. Visit the network at www.nysyouth.net ACT for Youth Center of Excellence act4youth@cornell.edu • 607-255-7736•http://www.actforyouth.net