* Please note that presenter’s notes are italicized*
Slide 1 : DEAL.org talks about youth gangs
Slide 2 : Is gang violence a real problem?
- A gang isn’t just a group of people hanging out together
- Most gangs engage in criminal activity
- The gang phenomenon is more widespread than we imagine – there are 434 active gangs in Canada (RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns)
- Both boys and girls engage in gang activities
Slide 3 : Youth gangs in Canada (2002)
- Saskatchewan 1315
- Ontario 3320
- British Colombia 1027
- Alberta 668
- Manitoba 171
- Québec 533
- Nova Scotia 37
Slide 4 : In the wrong place, at the wrong time
Jane Creba: On the 26th of December 2005, Jane Creba was killed during a shooting between rival gangs on the streets of Toronto. Seven other innocent people were injured during the shooting. In 2005, Toronto had 78 murders, 52 of which were related to guns. Jane had nothing to do with the gangs. She was simply in the wrong place, at the wrong time.
(Here, you might want to ask the group what they know about the Jane Creba story, how it was presented by the media, etc.)
Slide 5 : What is a gang?
- There is no single definition of youth gang
- In general, a gang is a group of at least 3 people engaging in criminal activities (The Nature of Canadian Urban Gangs and their Use of Firearms: A Review of the Literature and Police Survey -Department of Justice, 2007)
- They can be violent or non-violent
- Some gangs have a strict hierarchical organization with a leader and various stages of involvement and every member must respect this hierarchy (everyone plays a specific role). Some others have a loosely knit organization with more than one leader (RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns)
Slide 6 : Gangs and Justice
Gangs who commit and profit from crimes are considered to be criminal organizations. Any contribution to the activity of a criminal organization is illegal. According to the Canadian Criminal Code (section 467.1), being involved in a criminal organization or its activities or being aware of its past criminal activities –past, present or future- is illegal
Slide 7 : Boys, Beer and Hockey
Martin, Derek, Luke and Jadyn are all part of the same hockey team. In their spare time they like to watch hockey games on TV. While they watch they like to dress in the colours of their favourite team and they often make friendly bets as to which team will win. In order for other team members to become their friend, the boys have come up with a rule that forces any potential friend to drink a case of 24 beers in less than 4 hours.
What Martin, Derek, Luke and Jadyn are doing is definitely wrong and dangerous. Real friends stand by you regardless. They do not ask you or force you to do things you may regret. However, their actions are not those of a gang. They are not engaging in any criminal activity, they don’t have a particular hierarchy or a particular leader. They are a typical group of friends, although one with a rather boosted ego.
Slide 8 : Different types of gangs: part 1
Organized criminal gangs: they are more structured, more violent. They commit more advanced crimes involving drugs, prostitution or robberies. They often use violence against their own members if they suspect dishonesty or betrayal.
Different types of gangs: part 2
Youth Street Gangs: Their organization is not as structured and not as strict as the criminal gangs. However, they often work for the criminal gangs, engaging in street crimes such as burglaries, theft, drug trafficking, prostitution and vandalism. The majority of these gangs use violence inside and out of their organization.
Different types of gangs: part 3
Wannabe gangs: They are usually fairly small and disorganized. These include “tagger crews” (loose affiliations of youth whose principle activity is graffiti) and “party crews” (boisterious groups that evolve around social functions but which normally are not confrontational or criminal in their behaviour). The behaviour of wannabe gangs is modelled after criminal and street gang behaviour. For example: dress code, hand signals, tattoos, etc. They are mostly influenced by the media, music and pop culture trends.
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 9 : Myths
The media often portrays the lives of gangs and gang members as exciting and glamorous. The reality is much different.
a) A gang will protect you. Despite what you might think, gang members often have more enemies than friends. They are not likely to protect any new members from getting hurt ( RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns).
Slide 10 : Myths
b) A gang is like a family. Bonds between gang members can often be mistaken for strong and healthy relationships but they are nothing like a family. Many leaders decide who you can or cannot talk to, they tell you what to wear, what to do, etc. They might also force you to sell drugs or commit crimes by threatening you (RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns).
Slide 11 : Myths
c) Gangs are respected by the community. Actually, it is the complete opposite. Society looks down on criminality and violence. Rather than respect gangs, communities fear them.
Slide 12 : Myths
d) Each gang is created based on ethnic background. Although the media portrays gangs as being made up of members of the same ethnicity or race, in Canada more than 36% of gangs are multicultural. Most of the multicultural gangs are found in the provinces of Ontario, British Colombia and Manitoba, whereas single race gangs are found more in Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan (RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns).
Slide 13 : Family ties
Nicholas’s brother is 19. He is a branch leader for an important youth gang network in his hometown. A few months back, he invited Nicholas to come along with him to a gang meeting so that he would finally get to see what the fuss is about. He and his brother have a really strong relationship since their parents divorced when they were young and their father is practically never home because of his hectic work schedule.
Nicholas will likely be tempted to join the gang, mostly because his brother is already part of it. He trusts and respects him and sees him as an authority figure. He also wants to be seen, not only as a brother, but as a friend. He probably believes that by engaging in the same activities, he will gain a certain status and importance in his family and community.
Slide 14 : High risk youth – Many factors can influence someone to participate in a gang…Can you think of any reasons why someone would join?
- Youth who already have gang members in their group of friends
- School drop-outs or youth who experience difficulty in school or at work.
- Youth with a criminal background
Slide 15 : Why would young people want to join a gang? (Ask the group if they know of any reasons. If they don’t, use this list to prompt them)
- to feel that they belong
- so they feel protected from other gangs or from family
- so they are part of a «family»
- because of peer pressure or to join friends
- for fun and excitement
- to escape from their parents’ authority
- to escape from poverty or an abusive home
- to find money for food, drugs, clothes or shelter
- in admiration of family, friends or pop culture idols
Slide 16 : Recruitment
Recruitment is done mostly through friends, acquaintances and siblings. The average age of gang members is 17; however, youth as young as 11 are targeted. Gangs may even look in schools and popular hang outs.
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 17 : How do gangs recruit?
- They look in schools or neighbourhood hang-outs such as arcades, parks and malls
- They will pay for meals, snacks, etc. They want to make the recruit feel at ease so he or she feels welcomed and befriended.
- They take the recruit along as they commit a small crime, observe his or her reaction and maybe ask him or her to participate.
- After a short period of time, they will ask the recruit to join the gang. By that time, they know the recruit’s weaknesses and motivations to join the gang, and they can use those against him or her.
- Girls are often lured by males who promise them an exciting future. They are often lured by clothes, jewelery, money, etc.
Slide 18 : Gang Hazing/Initiation
Like a lot of gangs or groups, street or organized gangs have hazing rituals. For boys, the hazing will most likely consist of forced drug or alcohol consumption or organized fights with gang members. As for girls, they are often required to take part in sexual acts.
Slide 19 : What does being a member consist of?
- Varies with the degree of engagement of each member
- Take part in criminal activities: robbery, graffiti, sexual exploitation (mostly girls and young male members), assault, battery, drug trafficking
- However, not all roles have to do with criminal activity. In fact, certain members can be in charge of making sure every member is enjoying himself and having fun
- Others will be in charge of specific activities: planning future criminal activities, recruitment, accounting, storage of stolen merchandise
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 20 : Graffiti
Graffiti is not exclusive to gangs. The gangs that do graffiti use it to mark their turf and usually do it with numbers, letters and colours. Their graffiti rarely has artistic value.
Slide 21 : Net banging
The Internet has become one of the most powerful tools for gang recruitment and feuds. Any gang activity online, such as sharing information among gang members, establishing allegiances between gangs and/or provoking hostilities between gangs is qualified as net banging. Through the Internet, youth can expand their gang’s reach all over the globe. Certain gangs have grown drastically because of the Net (RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns).
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 22 : Two sexes, two realities – Danielle and Scott
Slide 23 : Two sexes, two realities
Danielle and Scott both joined their neighbourhood gang in October two years ago. Since then, Scott has been asked to fulfill many responsibilities, such as organizing meetings, delivering drugs, planning and conducting hazing rituals, etc. Danielle on the other hand is still an unofficial member. Of course, she helps out: she participates in the hazing rituals and often acts as a lure in the recruitment process.
Why do you think their roles are so different?
Roles played in a gang’s organization are significantly different for boys and girls. Boys typically participate more in the planning and in the coordination of the gang’s activities, whereas girls are considered more like “support staff”.
Slide 24 : Two sexes, two realities
Boys:
- represent the majority of the gang’s membership
- they often get official member status
- they can become leaders and participate in planning and organizing the gang’s activities
- other members participate in decision making, recruitment, hazing rituals.
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 25 : Two sexes, two realities
Girls:
- the minority of the gang’s membership
- they often have no official member status
- they easily move on to the sex trade (exotic dancing, escort service, prostitution) and they are often perceived as sexual objects.
- they have plenty of roles: spying, surveillance, transportation of drugs and arms, shoplifting, etc.
Source : RCMP 2006 – Youth Gangs and Guns
Slide 26 : What prevents a youth from joining a gang?
There is no fool-proof solution. However, benefiting from one or many of these will surely help.
- Self-esteem
- Friends that accept friends for who they are
- Liking and succeeding in school or at work
- Having a healthy social life (activities, interactions)
- Being surrounded by trustworthy and supportive adults
- Having goals and ambitions for the future
- Being happy or at least ok with the lives that they are living.
Slide 27 : Leaving a gang…
Any reason is a good reason if you want to leave your gang
- You are scared
- Severe incidents have happened (a member got hurt or killed)
- You want to follow a different path (school, work)
- You want to spend time with someone that’s not in the gang
- You were arrested by the police
- Your gang’s activity is monitored by a police force
Slide 28 : Thinking it through
- Think of the advantages and disadvantages of staying and of leaving
- Talk about it with a friend or someone you trust
- See a specialist in a community center. They will help you think it through
Slide 29 : You want to leave
- Ask for help from parents, friends or anyone who is not involved in your gang
- Think about your security. Do you owe money to anyone? Did you commit any crimes that could get you in trouble? You need to come clean and ask for help.
- Think about your needs. Everyone is not in the same situation. You might have an addiction; you might be involved with someone, etc. What is the best way for you to quit the gang? What do you have to do to cut any link to the gang?
- Get informed about the various programs that exist in your community. You will surely find one that is fitted for your needs.
Slide 30 : Friends in gangs
You think you might have a friend involved in youth gangs? Here are some hints that should ring a bell:
- Your friend wears a certain type of clothes, specific colour accessories, a certain hairstyle, etc. Bandanas and rags are often part of a gang’s identifiers and they are mostly worn as headbands or leg bands.
- His or her belongings are marked with logos or slogans associated with a certain gang
- His or her address book is filled with numbers and names you don’t know
- He or she can only talk to the “new friends” on his or her cell phone or pager
- He or she repeatedly skips classes or even entire school days
- He or she suddenly owns expensive objects (mp3 players, jewellery, video games) that his or her parents didn’t/wouldn’t buy
- He or she is acting more and more aggressively
- He or she carries a weapon: gun, knife, baseball bat, pepper spray
- He or she has bruises, cuts, etc. and has trouble explaining to you where they came from.
- He or she uses more and more hand signals (twisting fingers to form letters or numbers) and knows different handshakes than the ones you are used to
Slide 31 : How to help out?
- Talk to him or her about how you feel
- Listen to him or her without judging or preaching
- Together, weigh out the advantages and the disadvantages
- Respect his or her feelings towards the gang and its activities
- Suggest alternatives that would bring him or her equal satisfaction
- Suggest that he or she talks with a professional or a youth counsellor
- Know your limits. You can’t help someone that doesn’t want to be helped and you can’t take on this responsibility on your own.
Slide 32 : Additional resources
Sources
British Columbia Youth Police Network. Safe Schools, Safe Communities. A police resource for conducting classroom presentations. May 2005. 309p.
TelJeunes.com – Get Informed – Street Gangs
Manitoba Justice, Public Safety Branch. Project gang-proof: A Handbook for Families and Community members. Second Edition
Feature Focus: Youth Gangs and Guns. RCMP Environmental Scan. 2006.