Gangland

St. Adalbert 8th grade

Background Information

WHY DO PEOPLE JOIN GANGS?

A sense of “family” Need for food or money.

o Young men seek out gangs in areas of high poverty. Desire for protection

o If you do not know and trust your neighbors it creates a divide in your community that leaves kids vulnerable and unprotected.

Peer Pressure Family history or lack of role models Excitement To appear cool

FACTS ABOUT GANG VIOLENCE

A gang is a group of people who claim a territory and use it to make money through illegal activities.

86% of United States cities report gang activity Gangs can be organized based upon race, ethnicity, territory, or money-making activities, and are

generally made up of members ages 8 to 22. Gangs are one of the leading factors for growth of violent crimes both on and off school property. Gang violence in neighborhoods expose children to drugs and violence at a young age.

WHAT CAN KIDS DO TO PREVENT GANG VIOLENCE?

Settle arguments with words, not fists or weapons. Stay away from known gang members and gang hangouts. Get involved in your community in a positive way

GANG VIOLENCE IN CLEVELAND

For 90 days over the summer of 2014, a third squad was added to the Cleveland Police Gang Unit. They are focusing on violence involving guns.

Gangs in Cleveland are neighborhood gangs, geographically based. About 55 gangs are currently active in Cleveland, with about a half-dozen responsible for a majority

of the crime and violence. The largest gangs are not always the most violent. Gangs are active in neighborhoods across Cleveland, from east to west. There is barely any gang violence in Downtown Cleveland. It happens when rival gang members run

into each other at bus transfers. Cleveland has a crime rate of 74 per one thousand residents, making it one of the highest crime

rates in America. Cleveland is one of the top 100 most dangerous cities in the United States.

Alternatives:

Poster campaign around the school

We would have displayed our research on hallway posters and shown the number of gangs and how many people die from gang violence.

This would have raised awareness about what a gang is and been a constant reminder to stay away from violence.

We ultimately decided NOT to do this because we think a lot of students would have ignored the posters.

It meant a lot more to hear a personal story and meet someone who students can relate to about neighborhood violence. We were able to feel a connection to Miguel that we could not have felt to posters hanging in the hallways.

Neighborhood night at a community center

We wanted to bring people from the neighborhood together to talk about the problems caused by gangs.

Gang violence is not really a problem at St. Adalbert but it is a problem in the neighborhoods that students live in. Because of this we wanted our community centers to work for change.

We did not have the time or the resources to work with these community centers. Being 8th graders, we also did not have the skills to organize the neighborhood together.

It would have been almost impossible to get kids who are involved in a gang or are thinking of getting involved in a gang to come to the meeting.

Action Plan:

In order to raise awareness about gang violence in Cleveland, our team brought in a motivational speaker on April 17, 2015 who was a former gang member in a neighborhood not far from St. Adalbert Catholic School. Before the speech, members of the audience were asked to use one word to describe a gang member or give an example of a stereotype about to gangs. 

The motivational speaker spoke to the middle school about his  experience joining a gang, the types of violence he saw present in his neighborhood that encouraged gang behavior, what ultimately made him decide to leave the gang life, and what he has learned from his experiences.

The speaker explained that neighborhood cliques or fights going on between different streets is a very dangerous form of gang violence because it often does not get labeled as “gangs” so it is easier for kids to get caught up in this.

The speaker also informed the middle school students about ways to avoid getting caught up in a gang in their own neighborhood and how to detect if they or their friends are being surrounded by negative peer influences. 

Quotes from Students reacting to speaker from a reflection the following day:

“I learned that once you get into a gang it is life threatening to get out. You are trapped.” “The dreams you have for yourself determine your destiny. You should follow the

right path.” “Doing the wrong thing, like joining a crew, will lead you nowhere but in a grave or

behind bars.” “A gang takes away so much from your life and your family.” “He gave us a message of never giving up.” “Amazing” “Inspirational”

COMMUNITY VIOLENCE MIDDLE SCHOOL SURVEY RESULTS

100% of students reported that gangs were present in their community. On a scale of 1 to 10, 70% of students reported that gang violence in their community was a 5 or

above. 100% of students agree that it is important to stop violence in their community. 100% of students said that if they felt like there was a way for them to stop gang violence in their

community, they would do it. Most students do not feel like they have control over the violence in their neighborhood.

However, 60% of students did not feel responsible for someone else in their neighborhood. Our group thinks this could have a huge effect on stopping gangs and looking out for your neighbors.

St. Adalbert

6th 7th and 8th grade Community Violence Survey

Please complete the following questions.

1. Are there gangs in your community? Yes No2. On a scale of 1 to 10, how big of a problem is gang violence in your community?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

*1= not a problem; 10= very big problem*

3. Do you think it is important to STOP violence in your community? Yes No

4. What can kids do to stop gang violence?

5. Why do you think there is gang violence in your community?6. Is violence a bigger problem in your school or in your neighborhood?7. Why do you think kids join gangs?8. If there was a way to stop violence in your community, would you do it?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

*1= I would not stop violence; 10= I would do everything I could to stop violence*

9. On a scale of 1 to 10, how responsible do you feel for someone else in your neighborhood?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

*1= not responsible at all; 10= very responsible*

Pictures from the Speaker/Event on April 17, 2015

Miguel S., JCU student (’15), speaks to St. Adalbert middle school students (6th-8th grade) in the school cafeteria.

Pictures from the JCU Youth for Justice Summit, May 1, 2015

This group of students took first place at the Youth for Justice Summit based on their action plan and the community impact they had made.