Word: gangly
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Though there is now widespread agreement that gangs are a social and economic problem and prevention is as important as punishment, funds for programs to keep kids out of gangs and the criminal-justice system are still hard to find. "You don't need to spend five of every six dollars on suppression," says Steve Valdivia, who runs L.A.'s Community Youth Gang Services Project with a budget of $1.8 million. "If you spend two of every six on prevention, the results square themselves over time." The idea, he says, is to treat gangs like a "social disease" for which...
...replace the things that are missing in gang-ridden communities. "No more than 10% of any gang are hard-core, shoot-'em-up, hope-to-die criminals," Valdivia says. "But you won't find the Boy Scouts in South Central L.A. Most kids join gangs because that's what there is to join." And, like diseases, gangs can be contagious. According to University of Southern California gang expert Malcolm W. Klein, in 1961 there were 23 cities with known street gangs nationwide. Today there are 187. Practically every state has some kind of gang problem. Nor is it limited...
...spread of gang activity to cities across the country is part of the reason the FBI is reinforcing its antigang effort. Bureau officials believe that, in conjunction with local police, they can use federal laws like rico and Continuing Criminal Enterprise statutes to attack drug trafficking and other organized-crime elements of gang activity. "Many of these gangs are very heavily involved in drug distribution, and we have a lot of experience in the drug business and a lot of expertise in organized crime that will transfer very well into this effort," says Charlie J. Parsons, special agent in charge...
Skeptics argue that the FBI and other federal agencies have been oversold on the connection between street gangs and organized drug distribution. The Reiner report strongly downplays that link, and most local police authorities agree. "If you could eliminate the narcotics problem tomorrow, you'd still have a significant gang problem," says Deputy Chief Bernard C. Parks, a former L.A.P.D. gang coordinator, now commander of the department's central bureau. "And if the next day you eliminated the gang problem, you'd still have a significant crime problem...
Most members believe that gangs will survive no matter what law enforcement does. Joseph ("Downer") Cardenas, 16, a member of a South Central Chicano gang, was charged last week with felony assault with a shotgun. (He has denied the charge.) He recently asked his 11-year-old brother whether he wanted to be a gang banger. He was happy to hear the boy say no. Yet the chances are better than even that the youngster will follow in Joseph's footsteps. Joseph didn't want to be a gang banger either, but he followed the path paved by another Cardenas...