Reducing Gang Violence free essay sample

Governments, law enforcement, schools and other organizations are developing ways to reduce and prevent gang violence. It is such a controversial issue and people have different means about what the best approach is to reduce and prevent any further affects of gangs. William Triplett wrote a report titled Gang Crisis in May 2004. Triplett writes all about gangs and the best means in confronting the gang violence issue. Traditionally, state and local authorities have dealt with gangs since they were not considered a federal problem. In addition to law enforcement, policymakers have tried a variety of prevention programs, such as midnight basketball, designed to give adolescents socially acceptable alternative activities. Other programs, such as vocational training, have offered at-risk youth the promise of legitimate jobs, since unemployment is a major reason kids join gangs (Triplett 3). These programs could help very slightly but not enough for a significant change to the community. Law enforcement tried to have control and regulate gangs while they spread. We will write a custom essay sample on Reducing Gang Violence or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page As gangs migrated, many police departments set up special gang units. Authorities felt they were keeping pace with the problem until gangs began increasing in the late 1980’s and early 90’s, when insufficient resources prevented police from keeping up (Triplett 3), if the federal government would provide more resources, local law enforcement authorities say they could do more. In the Bermuda Sun, James Whittaker reports that families can stop gang violence. Senior reporter Whittaker says â€Å"the solution to Bermuda’s escalating gang problem lies with the families of the criminals themselves†. This is a home grown problem, a neighborhood problem and a community problem. And fixing the problem lies within us, our families and our children. And so I renew my call to the people of this country to do their part in stamping out the violence and cooperate with the authorities so that we can ensure that our country is preserved for the generations to come (Triplett). Bermuda Gov. Sir Richard Gozney urged the families of gang members to help the police in preventing the violence from escalating. â€Å"We have to urge those people who do have influence over gang members to help, persuade, and use their influence to stop these shooters, somehow they have to get through to them. stated Sir. Gozney. Paul White, a teacher at West Valley Leadership Academy, an alternative school in Los Angeles wrote an article called Communities Must Stand Up to Gang Intimidation. The growing problem of gang violence in Los Angeles is not going to just go away. It’s not going to blow over, quiet down or burn itself out. The ultimate problem is that gang members are willin g to die for the evil values they believe in, and the good guys who oppose them are not (White 1). This isn’t just theory; I speak from experience. I’ve seen firsthand what it will take to win the war on gangs. At WV Leadership Academy gang violence, racial disputes and other crimes are virtually nonexistent. A willingness to do a daily battle with gang members and stand up to their threats, intimidation and physical assaults at personal risk; a willingness to stand up to every single hint of lawless behavior with whatever legally available force of action is necessary and required (White 2). Bootlegging was instrumental in defeating early attempts to regulate the liquor business. In the period of prohibition (1920-1933) bootlegging along with smuggling increased greatly, and by 1930 they were well organized as a large unlawful industry. Certain areas were dominated by gangs that fought to defend or extend their territory. Infamous gangsters such as Al Capone in Chicago and Legs Diamond in New York City were heavily involved in bootlegging. The combination of implantation and violence accompanying this industry became so intolerable that it resulted to be an important factor in the final repeal of prohibition. In a chapter book called Responding to Gangs: Evaluation and Research it analyzes previous gang prevention programs. The Gang Resistance, Education and Training(GREAT) Program, a school-based program for middle school students, is designed to help them avoid peer pressure to join gangs through cultivation of such life skills as social competence, problem solving, and responsibility. Funded by the National Institute of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the program is a prevention strategy consisting of a series of classroom lessons taught by specially trained law enforcement personnel. In the 4-year follow up analyses GREAT students reported more positive social attitudes than the nonGREAT students. GREAT is intended to provide life skills that empower adolescents to resist peer pressure to join gangs. The GREAT program however, concluded to have inconsistent results therefore, GREAT, in tandem with other programs, may prove to be one piece of a much larger solution. In Boston they formed the Boston Gun Project, which is a problem-oriented policing intervention aimed at reducing youth homicide and youth firearms violence. It is now known as Operation Ceasefire and it’s based on a deterrence strategy, which focuses criminal justice attention on a small number of chronically offending gang-involved youth.