Grappling with gangs

NEA Today, Nov 1996

The author of Gangsta in the House: Understanding Gang Culture, Mike Knox is a 15-year veteran of the Houston Police Department and founding member of its first gang unit. Knox is now a national speaker and consultant on the topic of gangs.

Q: What kinds of kids gravitate to gangs?

A: Kids looking for security, a sense of belonging, and social acceptance. They view themselves as failures, but they really want to be successes. So they reorganize their beliefs. In their minds, failing to succeed within the system is the key to success. What's good becomes bad, what's bad becomes good. For example, murder is the worst thing a person could do in our society, but in a gang, killing a rival gang member is the highest achievement.

Q: What are the latest trends in gang dress in schools?

A: Every street gang member wears the baggy look-which speaks about low self-esteem. Kids are also rolling up one pant leg, and, in schools with strict dress codes, they're dying the inside of their pant pockets or shifting their belt buckles to the right or left. Bandanas are part of the gangster look, as is graffiti on clothes, and the repeated wearing of certain colors like blue, black, or red.

Q: What can educators do to discourage gang activity in schools?

A: Educators-starting with elementary school teachers-need to work with parents on the discipline issue, because gangs are made up of kids who lack self-discipline. Schools should enforce strict dress codes, conduct codes, and no-smoking ordinances. School staff should erase graffiti as soon as it appears, because it allows gangs to exchange messages.

Q: Can educators help kids get out of gangs?

A: Yes, by letting the child know he or she has a safety net-parents, and the police department. If the child is threatened, the assistant principal must remove the threatening kids from his class. The police must inform the gang member that he'll be prosecuted if he keeps it up. The parent must make sure the child changes his appearance and stops seeing gang members and that he or she is given fair, firm, and consistent discipline.

Discipline is the real cure.