NCJ Number
79692
Date Published
1981
Length
158 pages
Annotation
This book argues for the advancement of mediating structures (nonprofessional community groups) as the principal force in combating youth crime. It focuses on a model -- the House of Umoja in Philadelphia.
Abstract
The House of Umoja originated spontaneously within the black community and operates independently of the social welfare bureaucracy. Characterized by a family-oriented, voluntary living arrangement, the house takes in black youth gang members. It is credited with reducing the number of Philadelphia gang deaths from 39 in 1973 to just 1 in 1977. A 3-year study of the program gathered data through interviews with 30 former and present Umoja residents, staff members, and court and welfare referral agents and from police records. The Umoja ethic emphasizes work as a virtue, service to others, and respect for self and others based on identification with an African past. Most young men interviewed had participated in gang warfare and had been labeled by official juvenile institutions as too difficult to help. Only 1 of the 15 former residents has since been imprisoned. Programs similar to Umoja are the La Playa neighborhood program (Ponce, Puerto Rico), the Youth-in-Action Program (Chester, Pa.), and the South Arsenal Neighborhood Development Corporation (Hartford, Conn.). The book contends that these programs demonstrate a successful approach to combating or controlling juvenile delinquency through community-based youth control -- an alternative to welfare and deterrent programs currently espoused by official policies. The author suggests that policy development should strengthen community economic institutions, avoid involving large bureaucratic institutions in the operation and control of local mediating structures, and encourage economic risk-taking that aids indigenous neighborhood growth by transferring maintenance dollars into development dollars. Chapter references and an index are provided.