Gangs: Hope in Longevity

A series of articles in Sunday’s Times detailed a phenomenon that has troubled people in the Latino community for many years--the persistence of Chicano street gangs.

While public attention in recent years has focused on the violence and criminal activities of black gangs in South-Central Los Angeles, Chicano gangs remain a sad fact of life in this region’s many barrios--not just on the city’s Eastside and in adjacent East Los Angeles but also from the Harbor area to Pomona and from Oxnard to Santa Ana. But, while sobering, the report offered a faint glimmer of hope that grows out of the very longevity of some Chicano gangs.

Because Chicano gangs have been in existence since the 1940s, some men and women who are affiliated with them, now mature, see the aimlessness and waste of their youth and are tryingto steer the current gang members toward more constructive lives. These veteranos , as they are called in Chicano slang, are a unique and important resource. Where their insight and sensitivity have been used, they have helped to reduce gang problems--especially random violence. Some of these veteranos work in gang programs run by law-enforcement agencies. But the most noteworthy experiment is the Community Youth Gang Services Project, which employs former gang members as street workers in a crisis-intervention network. Because they know the gangs and their life styles, CYGS workers are able to anticipate violence before it happens and can try to prevent it. Thus, while there is still occasional violence in the Southland’s barrios, there has been a noticeable drop in the number of gang killings since CYGS workers first hit the streets in 1981. The record has not been so encouraging among black gangs--a key reason some people are still skeptical about CYGS. But it merits continued public support, not only to help Chicano youngsters but also to determine if its work with them can be replicated elsewhere.

Clearly the best answer to youth gangs--whether Chicano and black, Asian or Anglo--is long range. Gangs will disappear when every child has a decent home life, a complete education and, eventually, a good job. But in the short run efforts like CYGS help, if only by saving a few more lives.