A Step Toward Peace in Santa Ana

Anyone stopping by Santa Ana’s Salvador Park one recent Saturday could be excused for being nervous about the presence of about 100 members of rival gangs. Fortunately, the young men came in peace this time, albeit a nervous, tense peace.

The United Barrio Council, a coalition of about 50 church and neighborhood groups in Orange County, deserves credit for organizing the day in the park. Instead of fights or stabbings, there were handball and card tournaments.

Council members said it was the first major gathering of Orange County gangs in two years and was intended to try to launch another truce among groups whose violence wreaks havoc among members and terrifies innocent bystanders.

There have been gang truces before. Two years ago, one took hold between historically rival gangs in San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano. Unfortunately, it lasted only for months, giving way to fights and shootings, one of them fatal.

For more than three years, school districts across Orange County have battled gangs with a policy of “zero tolerance” for weapons on campus. They have also warned of possible expulsion for membership in a gang, becoming involved with drugs or smearing schools with graffiti.

Many schools ban “gang-related apparel,” including hair nets, neck chains, bandannas, combat boots or other apparel that police consider tantamount to an announcement of gang membership.

Those are all worthwhile attempts to undercut gangs. When it is too late to stop people from joining, getting them to end the violence is a good goal, one embraced by the United Barrio Council.

It would be naive to expect one meeting, or several, to bring about an immediate and permanent cease-fire. Santa Ana’s police chief rightly thanked anyone trying to stop gang violence, but warned that a similar truce several years ago came about because fighting between gangs interfered with their other criminal activities, like drug trafficking. It would be good if this gang truce lasts a long while, but even a brief halt to the drive-by shootings is worth encouraging.