Ex-Gang Members to Aid Voter Registration Drive
Some former gang members will begin walking their Los Angeles neighborhoods to register voters as part of a program aimed at building political strength for community residents, it was announced Monday.
“As you know, we’ve had a lot of problems in the communities,” said former NFL all-pro running back Jim Brown, founder of Amer-I-Can, which rehabilitates gang members. “We have problems with the police. We have problems with the politicians. We have every kind of problem that’s imaginable. We’re going to start in our own community with the idea that it is up to us to take responsibility for our own self-determination.”
Brown, flanked by about 50 ex-gang members, said they will be assigned areas to register voters. Brown founded the Amer-I-Can program to rehabilitate gang members by increasing their self-esteem and helping them find jobs.
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