NCJ Number
180442
Date Published
1994
Length
36 pages
Annotation
This manual provides information and guidelines to assist community members in preventing street gangs and taking action through early and informed intervention to existing gang problems.
Abstract
The manual rests on the assumption that the proliferation of gangs in a community requires the implied consent and denial of community members, that no community needs to experience gangs, and that successful prevention and early intervention depend on a personal commitment of each community member. Individual sections explain how to recognize gang activity, gang tattoos and symbols, and gang graffiti and other identifiers. Additional sections list the childhood factors believed by most professionals to be associated with becoming involved in a gang, risk factors for gang involvement, the psychological dynamics of vulnerability to gang involvement, and characteristics of the homicidal adolescent. Further sections present strategies for parents to use to prevent gang involvement; explain how street gangs form a community; list the five aspects of assessing community vulnerability to gang problems; describe skinhead groups; and list interventions needed by families, schools, communities, and law enforcement. Photographs, illustrations, and 17 references