Women’s Task Force Studies Teen Violence

There was a time when Danny Barragan was harassed by police for having a shaved head and wearing baggy pants when he walked the streets. He tagged his street name on walls and hung out with the wrong crowd.

But after a brush with the law and advice from a friend, the 14-year-old from San Fernando turned his life around. Now Danny looks forward to being the one to give advice.

“I want to make sure that he doesn’t go through the things that I went through,” he said of his newborn nephew. “I want to teach him sports and other things that I never got to do.”

Danny spoke about his life during a discussion of teen violence in the San Fernando Valley, organized by the Hispanic-Jewish Women’s Task Force and sponsored by the Jewish Federation/Valley Alliance.

About 35 women attended the gathering at Cal State Northridge and discussed ways to reduce youth violence.

“I think some type of legislative advocacy at any level is needed,” said Marsha Novak, a task force member and Encino resident. “We need to do something everyone can get their hands on.”

Helen Madrid Worthen, a community activist from Woodland Hills, agreed:

“There is so much power in here. We gotta get the message out.”

Three years ago, the women formed the task force as a way to increase communication between Jewish women and Latinas and to tackle social ills. Last year the group discussed ways to combat domestic violence, but members realized not enough was being done for young people, Novak said. In October, the task force will discuss steps it can take to curb teen violence, she said.

“There’s a culture young people are living in that’s very foreign to us adults,” said Sister Carmel Somers, who moderated the discussion and is the administrator at the nonprofit Valley Family Center in San Fernando. She added that youth sometimes emulate the violence around them. “There’s no quick solution to any of these things. We live in a very violent society.”