Council OKs Funding for Hope in Youth

Despite criticisms by the city’s Community Development Department, the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday voted 12 to 0 to approve a new $1.8-million, 10-month contract for Hope in Youth, the controversial anti-gang program backed by Cardinal Roger M. Mahony and Mayor Richard Riordan.

The new contract, which the council immediately sent to Riordan for his signature, would expire Nov. 30. The program was first funded by the city in October, 1993.

Development department officials released a report Tuesday censuring the program for failing to provide documented proof of its effectiveness after 16 months of operation and for encouraging a few youths to engage in political activities.

In light of a critical report, the council told Hope in Youth officials to provide data documenting the progress of the young people enrolled in its programs and to avoid political activity.

The concern about political activity arose after city officials found evidence at one Hope in Youth counseling center that youths were encouraged to participate in protests against Proposition 187, the ballot measure approved last November to limit state services to illegal immigrants.

Outreach workers in the San Fernando Valley, which has three Hope in Youth chapters that serve about 100 youths regarded as liable to become gang members, were pleased that the issue was finally resolved after months of uncertainty.

“I gave a sigh of relief,” said Maria Molina, a youth organizer at the group’s Pacoima center. “(The funding problem) has always been something like a shadow that’s been hanging over us. Finally, I can go back to my work.”

In January, the group was forced to close three of its centers in the San Fernando Valley after the County Board of Supervisors decided to halt funding for the anti-gang organization because of financial problems of its own.

Currently, the group has chapters in Reseda, Sun Valley and Pacoima.