By Brigid Schulte
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 20, 2008
For more than 10 years, the Alexandria police worked to combat gang violence by fostering ties, gathering intelligence, tracking activity and aggressively cleaning gang-related graffiti within 48 hours.
But officials soon learned that they could not arrest their way out of the gang-violence problem. So, with help from federal and local officials, the Northern Virginia Regional Gang Task Force was created and began to focus on prevention and intervention as well.
In the five years since, police have reported a 30 percent decrease in gang activity.
"We want people in need to know that we're here, to see that there are services available," Mike Mackey, gang prevention coordinator for Alexandria, said of two public service announcements sponsored by the task force. "We don't want to horrify people or highlight gangs. We're just letting people know we're out here doing the work and finding solutions."
The anti-gang campaign's newest approach, the Intervention Prevention Education Program, is also its most effective, Mackey said.
That effort puts staff members on the streets -- talking to kids, getting to know them, finding after-school programs, sports teams or clubs for them to join and encouraging them to stay in school. The staff members work intensively with families, daily for the first three months, to help resolve issues that might leave youths feeling disconnected and more likely to join a gang.
"When we interviewed kids who were in jail for gang activity, we asked them what was the thing that would have kept them out of gangs. They all said, 'It would have taken just one adult to care about me,' because a gang becomes like a family," said Lillian Brooks, court services director in Alexandria. "When you take one kid at a time and spend the time, you do get more results."
In Alexandria alone, Brooks said, 30 youths are part of this hands-on program, with many more on the waiting list.
Brooks and others -- and the public service announcements -- cite a finding by the National Gang Crime Research Center that more than 80 percent of youths in gangs said they would get out if they had a choice and the right help.
The figure is more like 95 percent, if not higher, said Juan Pacheco, a former gang member who runs the Virginia chapter of Barrios Unidos (United Neighborhoods), which aims to prevent and intervene in gang violence. He said he supports the intervention strategy.
"Our ideology at Barrios Unidos says we cannot give up on young people. We cannot give up on gang members," Pacheco said of the group, which was founded in 1994. "They're young people that are searching. We can't just lock them up and throw away the key."
And to keep youths from even thinking about joining a gang, it is critical that they believe they have options for the future and that they are connected to positive places or organizations such as schools, churches or families, he said. But most of all, Pacheco said, they must have caring relationships.
"You've got to walk with them. You've got to share their pain. Be with them," he said. "It's about relationships. About taking someone to get a job, or, if they make a mistake, going to court with them or visiting them in jail. Because we believe in the possibility of change."
The messages of the video and audio announcements, on Spanish- and English-language radio stations and on Cox and Comcast TV channels, will also be posted in brochures at recreation enters and other places. In the video, the screen opens with a close-up of a mother's anguished face. "My sons were convicted of second-degree murder," she says. "They lost their youth."
Another mother says sadly, in Spanish: "My son was in a gang. And now he's in jail." Both mothers go on to urge viewers to watch for signs of gang activity. "Know where your children are. Stay involved in their lives. Tell them that you love them."
The mothers and their stories are real. Their aim -- and that of the task force -- is clear: to dissuade youths from joining gangs and to encourage them and their parents to seek help.
"Don't Get Lost in Gangs," reads the English version of the public service announcement. "Gangs, An Alley Without an Exit," reads the Spanish version.
A key part of Northern Virginia's effort to combat gangs and violence, task force members said, is the mothers.
"When we developed the PSA, we went out to the kids and said, 'What would you see as a good PSA? What would have an impact on you?' We had all these different ideas. But what they all came back with was their mother," said Patricia Romano, director of Court Services in Arlington County, who oversees its gang prevention effort.
"They all have this tremendous respect for their mothers and not wanting to hurt their mother," Romano said. "We're hoping that people will see these PSAs and start questioning and be more aware of issues around them and ask for help."
The announcements include a phone number and a Web site for the gang task force, which covers 16 jurisdictions, including Prince William County, Dumfries, Manassas and Manassas Park. Parents and teens who call or click can find out not only about after-school programs but also about how to connect with a caring adult. Alexandria, in particular, has called on community members to mentor youths, Mackey said. And the number of mentors has grown to 250 in the past 18 months.
Pacheco, who often attends gang-prevention meetings and takes youths with him so they can share their views, said the public service announcements' message is powerful.
"It's the right message," he said. "Young people need to hear about the suffering we put our parents through. I never understood the pain my mom had when I was doing the things I was doing. But the important thing is, they have to be sure it is broadcast on channels and at times when parents and kids are actually watching."
The PSAs can be viewed athttp://www.preventgangsnova.org. For information, call 703-GET HELP (703-438-4357).
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