COA Riverwest Organizes Gang Education Forums
Dec 21st, 2009
Two mothers whose lives have been punctuated with tragedy and grief closed out a month-long series of “gang forums” hosted by COA Riverwest. The gang forums are the opening to the youth-led Crime Strategy Initiative that over the next several months will train teens to become peer educators to raise awareness among younger children and the community about the dangers of gangs.
Pastor Vivian Jackson of Standing in Faith Immanuel in Milwaukee, one of the mothers who participated in the forum, said that she came to “inform some of the young men to take a stand against gangs and go in a different direction.” Jackson talked about her son’s involvement in gangs in the late ‘80’s and ‘90’s that ended with a 24-year prison sentence. After 17 years her son will be released from prison on Dec. 22 at the age of 39. Jackson’s talk with the teens focused on the young men’s importance to the women in their lives.
Mary Helena, of Racine, also led a discussion with the teens about gang violence. Helena talked about the teens’ ability to make a difference and to leave this world a better place than they found it. Her son was shot and killed in 2005 due to his gang involvement, and she very candidly spoke about how that event had affected her and her own mother. “I spoke so that another mother doesn’t have to speak,” said Helena.
The idea for the forums was the brainchild of Riverwest teens who attended a peace rally against gang-related activities in Madison several months ago. The teens were asked what they could do in their community to reduce the threat gangs posed. The forums were held every Monday beginning on Nov. 23, and were part of an effort since then to educate teens at COA Riverwest about gangs and the impact gang participation has on the individual, their families and the community. Since the forums began, teens have had discussions with law enforcement officials, former gang members and other community representatives. Teens have talked about how violence has affected their lives and discussed their ability to make it out of a negative environment.
The gang forums are part of a larger initiative by Safe & Sound. They are one feature of the Crime Strategy Initiative (CSI) at COA Riverwest, which provides an opportunity for Safe Places funded by Safe & Sound to educate youth about violence and issues like gangs and guns that fuel it. Youth then use the information and knowledge they gain to develop a response to the crime issues they consider significant in their communities. Sixteen other Safe Place sites around the city participate with their youth in the CSI.
The gang forums are just the beginning of the CSI at COA Riverwest. The teens will continue to learn about gangs and gang-like activity and take what they have already learned over the past few months to develop a lesson plan. According to Teen Program Coordinator, Tiffany Donald, there is currently a team of about 20 youth participating in the project. After these youth have developed their lesson plans, they will then go into the larger community during Gang Prevention Month to educate younger youth and their peers about what they have learned. The decision to have teens educate others in the community and to bring in community members from various backgrounds for the forums coincide with the initiative’s theme, which is “we are all connected,” said Donald.
