well maybe not living in a crime ridden gang infested poverty stricken neighborhood.
o do not go there either cool waters... drugs and alcohol abuse is a universal problem, money or not
BUT hopelessness is a learned lifestyle from poverty and decaying neighborhood. +++++
What part of "What other positive ways are there to prevent children from ending up in gangs, on drugs and alcohol, or falling through the cracks?" was unclear to you?
What part of "What other positive ways are there to prevent children from ending up in gangs, on drugs and alcohol, or falling through the cracks?" was unclear to you?
YOUR the one unclear the answer is right in my post.
move away from the nighborhood that holds these values .
possibly one that doesnt take the welfare check or the drive to pick up the drugs you want is farther and out of the "bus line">
the biggest influence in a childs life is his parents and how they lived this is a learned life style do some escape?
yeah maybe they met a person who helped them UNLEARN the lifestyle but to do such one has to out of the issues in their own life.
no one who has any degree of success lives or abides within the walls of a inner city areana UNless they are also attached to the life style in some way.
this is EXACTLY why we desegrated the schools across america.
pond, that's not a possibility for children. What? You think they can just pick up and move? Reality check here.
exactly and why it is a inner city problem that is difficult to overcome or break out of. to leave your family and neighborhood is difficult to live in a world of success when every thing you ahve known is a mess is asking alot of anyone and RARELY done.
CW - This is very pie in the sky - but mentoring parents would be something I could see working.
Of course - many of these parents become parents while they are still children themselves.
I see way, way too many pregnant girls in my daughter's high school - and we don't live in a bad part of town.
Kids really do need as many positive influences in their lives as possible. Teachers, coaches, band leaders.
Annnnndddddd...since I mentioned band leaders....studies have shown that the arts help children successfully express themselves through non-violent means. Not to mention that if a kid is at a lesson, he's not just hanging around on a street corner. The girl who stays afterschool to go to choir or get involved in the school musical has an identity that isn't gang related. These kids now become artists, musicians, dancers, actors - but not a Crip, Yo Dog, Blood or whatever other identity is unsavory in your town.
As budgets get cut and more and more emphasis gets put on academics - the benefits of the arts are getting grossly overlooked. I'm not saying that sports arent' important , and I don't want to take funding away from the core curriculum. (curriculae?)
Ok, so in a nutshell - mentor the parents, keep teens from becoming parents, keep the arts in the schools and even have some volunteer positions for artists to interact with students - this last one I have done and I have seen some amazing results.
Ok, so in a nutshell - mentor the parents, keep teens from becoming parents, keep the arts in the schools and even have some volunteer positions for artists to interact with students - this last one I have done and I have seen some amazing results.
agreed.
community-based projects that give kids a sense of pride.
community based family resources for counseling, computer access, etc.
the best thing my area has going is the after school "school" with a very generous scholarship fund. kids take dance, arts, sports, writing, cooking... it's amazing what it's done for my kids socially, and there are kids from the poorest families who get to attend classes. if I could, I would volunteer there because it is such an awesome thing for the kids in my neighborhood.
As part of the reclamation of our neighborhood in Topeka, we bought the house across the street from us. It had been a crack/gang house for nearly a decade. We couldn't get the city to tear it down, so we bought it.
Anyway, I used that house as a place for women and children to hang out. My goals were to give women a break from abusive relationships and to give children a place where they could be free to be themselves.
The two things that I did that the kids LOVED was allow them to use the walls for their artistic expression (I provided all sorts of art supplies) and provided them different musical instruments. When the walls got full of their art, we took pictures and repainted to give them a new blank canvas. At least twice a week we also had a parade around 3 or 4 blocks with the kids playing their instruments and singing and dancing.
It was awesome!
The added benefit of being able to work with the parents was awesome, too. You should have seen their faces when they watched their children full of the spark of hope.
And the widows couldn't get enough of helping out with hot meals, snacks, hugs full of pride, and all sorts of other encouragement.
It's not hard to get these things going. Just some imagination and willingness.
there's a very small minority, but I think it's bigger than most suspect, of men who are victimized in violent relationships, who stay for the sake of the kids because in many states, a man still cannot get help and cannot leave WITH the kids. I've met some who's situations leave them in such despair, because the only way they can help their kids survive is by staying in the relationship. I would love to see community efforts include them somehow.
I have had parents come up to me and tell me that I saved their kids lives. So many kids don't have the confidence they need to achieve academically. Sometimes they don't think they are good at anything. Then they discover this talent, this passion, and they just open up in other areas.
Never underestimate the effect of what a giving a child a skill can do for his or her outlook on life. Its quite something to have a kid be praised by his or her peers for a skill that they really recognize. After that, if the right person comes along and shows this child how to parlay this skill into a career .....well, you get the picture.
studies have shown that the arts help children successfully express themselves through non-violent means.
My town is very small and doesnt have any gang activity, it has had its share of restless teens over the years, and at one point a fairly serious crack/heroin problem. A few of the youths finally tired of seeing some of their friends die, got together and formed a group that they oversee and run with a lot of help and financing from the community that has been very successful in not only taking care of kids that are at risk but turning more than a few around.
Being an Art and cultural community most of the programs centered around the arts that allowed anyone with an idea to pursue it and pour their energies into it. Many of the older people in town donated their time as mentors, ---Plays were written and performed, movies were made. When graffitti became a small problem, the energy was funnelled into a mural project (the space and materials were donated by the community--the idea was the kids...). A LOT of kids I have known have cleaned up well with a little support, encouragement and direction
Its small potatoes compared to the problems in inner cities but the idea has worked well. For the most part the community as a whole works together to find solutions to the obvious problems. There is a fairly comprehensive network of individuals, service agencies, and community support that each have their separte piece to make the whole thing work pretty darned good.
This is the mural project initiated by the local kids who previously had been taggers--It commemorates WEB Dubois the outspoken black leader who was born in my town and who had been mostly forgotten until the kids brought him to the forefront. They have since made several strides in recognizing Dubois' contributions also starting a historiccal site at his birthplace..Most of those 'hopeless junkie bad kids' are in college now or doing something else productive.
Ya know...given your town's history...it would be really kewl if maybe your town could 'adopt' an inner city school or something...spread the success...ya know?
Can you imagine how strong an impact your town could make on inner city kids just by sharing that mural and the story that goes with it? I can...and I know that it would change the direction of the lives of at least a few.
it would be really kewl if maybe your town could 'adopt' an inner city school or something
I think that is gonna probably happen if it hasnt already,(tough to keep track of everything that is being done) a few of the kids have had enough impact made on their life, that they have gone on, some to other places, to do this type of work fulltime......
I know that the youth group, who are the real movers, interact with other youth groups around the country and around the world to form a larger community, THIS LINK has one project where they gathered artwork "of any style, medium, or size by artists of all skill levels" that they were able to get displayed at the UN on the International Day of Peace.
Unfortunately their WEBSITE that details their projects is down right at the moment (they are still kids!).. at least the music (one of the local projects) is still there. Some of the projects are incredibly insightful.
The key was the kids who started it, but what makes it all work is the active participation, or at least support in one form or another of a good portion of the entire community.
Here in KC there was a public service ad running for quite a long time. In the ad, many kids of all ages came on and said, "Do you know me? Do you care what happens to me? Do you know my dreams in life?"
The ad was advocating mentoring. It may have been a Big Brother/Big Sister ad or some other such organization...but I don't remember right now. But the point of the ad was that mentoring was one of the most successful positive steps in the prevention of inner city problems such as gangs.
What other positive ways are there to prevent children from ending up in gangs, on drugs and alcohol, or falling through the cracks?
This might be related to mentoring... helping each kid be successful in school. A kid that feels like he/she "belongs" when doing well in one or more school related activity is critical... primarily, doing well academically, but also in a shared experience of success in... sports, or music (i.e. band/choir), debate team... etc.
Gangs happen because kids need the security brought by a sense of belonging. When they get that from positive group activities, they don't need gangs... at least that's my understanding.
Get them into martial arts with a sen sai (sp?) who teaches them self respect and respect for their master, and a respect for hard work to achieve amazing goals. The "Master/Apprentice" thing. And that is from Dr. Laura Schlesinger.
Later, after learning some grappling/wrestling skills, they can get into the Ultimate Fighting Competitions (UFC) for some awesome fighting experiences. A most excellent way for the to "excape" from the Ghettoooo....."
potato, yes, after school programs have proven to be very successful. I am a member of the United Methodist Church. Every church I have attended has after school programs (along with many other programs) and it is amazing the success of such programs. As for men who are victims of domestic violence...I don't know what to do in that situation because most men would not admit to such goings on.
mstar, just awesome!
cc, yeppers!
Rocky, agreed. As I said above, after school programs where kids are helped with homework and get one-on-one tutoring are quite successful in the UMC. It doesn't take much to volunteer, either. 1 day a week for 1 hour with 1 student during the school year is the usually requested commitment. Some folks can only do 1 day a month. It's still better than nothing. And the volunteers are often adults who live in the neighborhoods of the students...which gives added success because now the student not only feels a sense of belonging at school, but in his/her own community.
Jonny, your suggestion is nationally recognized as one of the very best ways to address violence. When anyone...adult and child alike...is taught self-respect, self-control and self-defense, their choices in life expand. Is it the YWCA that runs those public service ads about how girls involved in sports are less likely to get involved in drugs, become teen mothers or get involved in abusive relationships?
I just happened to find THIS ARTICLE in the local paper this morning, about another local outfit that came up with a good idea
TO JAIL OR NOT TO JAIL , SHAKESPEARE"S A SOLUTION
WASHINGTON — A Pittsfield teenager yesterday traded a stretch in the Big House for an experience at the White House and swapped the grip of a supervisor for an encounter with the first lady.
And at the fork of those divergent paths four years ago was Shakespeare, lots of it.
"I was a bad kid," Collette Davis, 18, said of her troubled time as a high school freshman that landed her in juvenile court facing lockup or makeup — part of her costume as a Shakespearean character.
"Shakespeare? I don't want to do Shakespeare," Davis said, recalling the choice. "Then I had so much fun."
And it shows.
She's performed in several plays — more than her sentence required — with Shakespeare & Company in Lenox and met Laura Bush yesterday when the theater group and a local judge received accolades from the First Lady for making "extraordinary contributions" to local youth and their communities.
"As they perform the works of The Bard, young people who struggled to make themselves heard suddenly find many people 'lending their ears,' " Laura Bush said at the White House event, referencing Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar."
The theater company has gained national attention for its program "Shakespeare in the Courts," which has sent about 100 teenagers from juvenile court to royal court for a 12-week crash course in pentameter verse and self-esteem.
After being featured on CNN, the BBC, in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, the program was one of 17 that received the White House "Coming Up Taller" award.
"The alternative is to be in a lockup situation," said Paul Perachi, first justice in the state Juvenile Court Department, Berkshire Division.
'It changes everything'
Perachi and Kevin Coleman, education director with Shakespeare & Company, created the program in 2001. It grills students on the meaning of Shakespeare's complex language and forces about 20 kids at a time to help each other learn lines, overcome stage fright and act.
"Most of the kids appearing in court would rather go to jail than do this," Coleman said. "It's terrifying."
Perachi said he looks for kids who have no aspiration to act, disdain public speaking and represent the toughest to teach.
At the end, the group is transformed into a troupe, giving a private, abbreviated showing for family, invited friends and probation officers. Confidentiality requirements prohibit open admission.
"It changes everything," Coleman said of the program's effect.
As Davis, Perachi and Coleman waited to meet Sen. John Kerry yesterday, Davis seemed to agree with her stage instructor.
"I can hold my head up and just walk," she said. "I can smile."
I think that the programs and various activities that have been suggested are a great idea to help kids...
...but I also see a great need in our country for the men to rise up and be real fathers. There are far too many broken homes where mom is trying to fulfill the role of both parents AND work a full time job.
What's happening to kids is a symptom of the family unit disintigrating.
Throwing dead beat dads into jail for not paying child support is a good idea...but even if they DO pay their child support, the kids still need a father who spends time with them and supervises them and provides a role model for them. The family unit has been disintigrating in our country for some time now and it is only getting worse...
Promise Keepers was a good idea as it encouraged men to dedicate themselves to their families...I think there should be mandatory classes in all public high schools that focus on the importance of the family structure and the role of a man as a father...
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pond
well maybe not living in a crime ridden gang infested poverty stricken neighborhood.
o do not go there either cool waters... drugs and alcohol abuse is a universal problem, money or not
BUT hopelessness is a learned lifestyle from poverty and decaying neighborhood. +++++
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CoolWaters
What part of "What other positive ways are there to prevent children from ending up in gangs, on drugs and alcohol, or falling through the cracks?" was unclear to you?
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pond
YOUR the one unclear the answer is right in my post.
move away from the nighborhood that holds these values .
possibly one that doesnt take the welfare check or the drive to pick up the drugs you want is farther and out of the "bus line">
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WordWolf
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CoolWaters
pond, that's not a possibility for children. What? You think they can just pick up and move? Reality check here.
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pond
the biggest influence in a childs life is his parents and how they lived this is a learned life style do some escape?
yeah maybe they met a person who helped them UNLEARN the lifestyle but to do such one has to out of the issues in their own life.
no one who has any degree of success lives or abides within the walls of a inner city areana UNless they are also attached to the life style in some way.
this is EXACTLY why we desegrated the schools across america.
exactly and why it is a inner city problem that is difficult to overcome or break out of. to leave your family and neighborhood is difficult to live in a world of success when every thing you ahve known is a mess is asking alot of anyone and RARELY done.
the cycle will continue for many.
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CoolWaters
pond, do you have any positive preventive measures, such as mentoring, to offer? That's the topic of this thread.
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doojable
CW - This is very pie in the sky - but mentoring parents would be something I could see working.
Of course - many of these parents become parents while they are still children themselves.
I see way, way too many pregnant girls in my daughter's high school - and we don't live in a bad part of town.
Kids really do need as many positive influences in their lives as possible. Teachers, coaches, band leaders.
Annnnndddddd...since I mentioned band leaders....studies have shown that the arts help children successfully express themselves through non-violent means. Not to mention that if a kid is at a lesson, he's not just hanging around on a street corner. The girl who stays afterschool to go to choir or get involved in the school musical has an identity that isn't gang related. These kids now become artists, musicians, dancers, actors - but not a Crip, Yo Dog, Blood or whatever other identity is unsavory in your town.
As budgets get cut and more and more emphasis gets put on academics - the benefits of the arts are getting grossly overlooked. I'm not saying that sports arent' important , and I don't want to take funding away from the core curriculum. (curriculae?)
Ok, so in a nutshell - mentor the parents, keep teens from becoming parents, keep the arts in the schools and even have some volunteer positions for artists to interact with students - this last one I have done and I have seen some amazing results.
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potato
agreed.
community-based projects that give kids a sense of pride.
community based family resources for counseling, computer access, etc.
the best thing my area has going is the after school "school" with a very generous scholarship fund. kids take dance, arts, sports, writing, cooking... it's amazing what it's done for my kids socially, and there are kids from the poorest families who get to attend classes. if I could, I would volunteer there because it is such an awesome thing for the kids in my neighborhood.
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CoolWaters
Oh the arts! Dooj! A woman after my heart! :)
As part of the reclamation of our neighborhood in Topeka, we bought the house across the street from us. It had been a crack/gang house for nearly a decade. We couldn't get the city to tear it down, so we bought it.
Anyway, I used that house as a place for women and children to hang out. My goals were to give women a break from abusive relationships and to give children a place where they could be free to be themselves.
The two things that I did that the kids LOVED was allow them to use the walls for their artistic expression (I provided all sorts of art supplies) and provided them different musical instruments. When the walls got full of their art, we took pictures and repainted to give them a new blank canvas. At least twice a week we also had a parade around 3 or 4 blocks with the kids playing their instruments and singing and dancing.
It was awesome!
The added benefit of being able to work with the parents was awesome, too. You should have seen their faces when they watched their children full of the spark of hope.
And the widows couldn't get enough of helping out with hot meals, snacks, hugs full of pride, and all sorts of other encouragement.
It's not hard to get these things going. Just some imagination and willingness.
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potato
that's an awesome story, CW.
there's a very small minority, but I think it's bigger than most suspect, of men who are victimized in violent relationships, who stay for the sake of the kids because in many states, a man still cannot get help and cannot leave WITH the kids. I've met some who's situations leave them in such despair, because the only way they can help their kids survive is by staying in the relationship. I would love to see community efforts include them somehow.
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WhiteDove
What other positive ways are there to prevent children from ending up in gangs, on drugs and alcohol, or falling through the cracks?
Well there is this class............ :)
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doojable
I have had parents come up to me and tell me that I saved their kids lives. So many kids don't have the confidence they need to achieve academically. Sometimes they don't think they are good at anything. Then they discover this talent, this passion, and they just open up in other areas.
Never underestimate the effect of what a giving a child a skill can do for his or her outlook on life. Its quite something to have a kid be praised by his or her peers for a skill that they really recognize. After that, if the right person comes along and shows this child how to parlay this skill into a career .....well, you get the picture.
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mstar1
My town is very small and doesnt have any gang activity, it has had its share of restless teens over the years, and at one point a fairly serious crack/heroin problem. A few of the youths finally tired of seeing some of their friends die, got together and formed a group that they oversee and run with a lot of help and financing from the community that has been very successful in not only taking care of kids that are at risk but turning more than a few around.
Being an Art and cultural community most of the programs centered around the arts that allowed anyone with an idea to pursue it and pour their energies into it. Many of the older people in town donated their time as mentors, ---Plays were written and performed, movies were made. When graffitti became a small problem, the energy was funnelled into a mural project (the space and materials were donated by the community--the idea was the kids...). A LOT of kids I have known have cleaned up well with a little support, encouragement and direction
Its small potatoes compared to the problems in inner cities but the idea has worked well. For the most part the community as a whole works together to find solutions to the obvious problems. There is a fairly comprehensive network of individuals, service agencies, and community support that each have their separte piece to make the whole thing work pretty darned good.
This is the mural project initiated by the local kids who previously had been taggers--It commemorates WEB Dubois the outspoken black leader who was born in my town and who had been mostly forgotten until the kids brought him to the forefront. They have since made several strides in recognizing Dubois' contributions also starting a historiccal site at his birthplace..Most of those 'hopeless junkie bad kids' are in college now or doing something else productive.
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CoolWaters
That is just awesome mstar!
Ya know...given your town's history...it would be really kewl if maybe your town could 'adopt' an inner city school or something...spread the success...ya know?
Can you imagine how strong an impact your town could make on inner city kids just by sharing that mural and the story that goes with it? I can...and I know that it would change the direction of the lives of at least a few.
Awesome!
dooj...yeah...that's what it's all about imo. :)
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CoolWaters
I posted this on the Gangs thread and thought it would be good to post here, too:
Yes, that is a picture of me in the article of the 3rd link above.
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mstar1
I think that is gonna probably happen if it hasnt already,(tough to keep track of everything that is being done) a few of the kids have had enough impact made on their life, that they have gone on, some to other places, to do this type of work fulltime......
I know that the youth group, who are the real movers, interact with other youth groups around the country and around the world to form a larger community, THIS LINK has one project where they gathered artwork "of any style, medium, or size by artists of all skill levels" that they were able to get displayed at the UN on the International Day of Peace.
Unfortunately their WEBSITE that details their projects is down right at the moment (they are still kids!).. at least the music (one of the local projects) is still there. Some of the projects are incredibly insightful.
The key was the kids who started it, but what makes it all work is the active participation, or at least support in one form or another of a good portion of the entire community.
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coolchef
ah the arts!
when i was elected to the school board in my town my platform was
ABCD
art,band. chorus ,drama
i agree
kids seem to lose themselves in this and they love it
and the big plus is that it can be a life long thing
come on who doesn't like to sing!!
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Rocky
This might be related to mentoring... helping each kid be successful in school. A kid that feels like he/she "belongs" when doing well in one or more school related activity is critical... primarily, doing well academically, but also in a shared experience of success in... sports, or music (i.e. band/choir), debate team... etc.
Gangs happen because kids need the security brought by a sense of belonging. When they get that from positive group activities, they don't need gangs... at least that's my understanding.
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J0nny Ling0
Get them into martial arts with a sen sai (sp?) who teaches them self respect and respect for their master, and a respect for hard work to achieve amazing goals. The "Master/Apprentice" thing. And that is from Dr. Laura Schlesinger.
Later, after learning some grappling/wrestling skills, they can get into the Ultimate Fighting Competitions (UFC) for some awesome fighting experiences. A most excellent way for the to "excape" from the Ghettoooo....."
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CoolWaters
potato, yes, after school programs have proven to be very successful. I am a member of the United Methodist Church. Every church I have attended has after school programs (along with many other programs) and it is amazing the success of such programs. As for men who are victims of domestic violence...I don't know what to do in that situation because most men would not admit to such goings on.
mstar, just awesome!
cc, yeppers!
Rocky, agreed. As I said above, after school programs where kids are helped with homework and get one-on-one tutoring are quite successful in the UMC. It doesn't take much to volunteer, either. 1 day a week for 1 hour with 1 student during the school year is the usually requested commitment. Some folks can only do 1 day a month. It's still better than nothing. And the volunteers are often adults who live in the neighborhoods of the students...which gives added success because now the student not only feels a sense of belonging at school, but in his/her own community.
Jonny, your suggestion is nationally recognized as one of the very best ways to address violence. When anyone...adult and child alike...is taught self-respect, self-control and self-defense, their choices in life expand. Is it the YWCA that runs those public service ads about how girls involved in sports are less likely to get involved in drugs, become teen mothers or get involved in abusive relationships?
Good stuff here, imo!
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mstar1
I just happened to find THIS ARTICLE in the local paper this morning, about another local outfit that came up with a good idea
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GrouchoMarxJr
I think that the programs and various activities that have been suggested are a great idea to help kids...
...but I also see a great need in our country for the men to rise up and be real fathers. There are far too many broken homes where mom is trying to fulfill the role of both parents AND work a full time job.
What's happening to kids is a symptom of the family unit disintigrating.
Throwing dead beat dads into jail for not paying child support is a good idea...but even if they DO pay their child support, the kids still need a father who spends time with them and supervises them and provides a role model for them. The family unit has been disintigrating in our country for some time now and it is only getting worse...
Promise Keepers was a good idea as it encouraged men to dedicate themselves to their families...I think there should be mandatory classes in all public high schools that focus on the importance of the family structure and the role of a man as a father...
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