The Los Angeles Times has a short article today on a study conducted by the Advancement Project that says Los Angeles is losing the fight against gangs because "...it has failed to properly fund and focus efforts to keep youngsters from joining gangs in the first place..."
There are 23 anti-gang programs costing $82 million a year. $56 million of that is focused on suppression; arresting, trying and incarcerating gang members. Only a small percentage of the total funding is going toward prevention.
In essence, the city has been focusing on dealing with symptoms rather than the problem. I'm not saying that gang members don't need to be brought in. It's a huge problem and needs to be dealt with. You can't solve the problems as long as the gangs are operating.
But it's ignoring the problems that are leading people to go into gangs in the first place; poverty, and lack of education and opportunity.
There needs to be a better balance with an emphasis on prevention. You can't solve the problem by allowing gangs to function in those areas and you can't solve it by not addressing those things that perpetuate it.
For whatever reason members chooses to be a part of a gang. Maybe they grew up with it and don't see other options. Maybe they're threatened into it. Young and impressionable, children get a taste of a kind of power they can understand. Heady stuff.
As long as those things exist that make joining a gang look like a better alternative than not, Los Angeles' gang problem is never going away.
Posted by: S_Blackmoore on Thursday, August 03, 2006 - 10:37 AM
