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October 24 - November 4, 2005  LegiSchool's dialogue on Gangs and California Culture is now closed. The dialogue enabled high school students, educators, community leaders and others throughout California to examine and discuss the many critical issues concerning gangs in California. Gangs and gang activity are much more than the subject of movies and song lyrics for many California teens. Gangs are a way of life for some youths in the state and many others are indirectly affected by gang activity. Though by some measures, gang activity has been decreasing in recent years (US Department of Justice, 2002 National Youth Gang Survey Fact Sheet, April 2004) some communities are reporting increases in gang violence, and there is evidence that gang activity has become more deadly. In any case, participation in gangs is a persistent problem. The California Department of Justice puts the number of gang members in California at an estimated 300,000. Gangs today draw members from all races, classes, and ethnic groups, which means that communities that once felt immune to gang activity are now having to address the problem. This is especially true for schools, which have increasingly felt the need to reduce and prevent gang activity. The dialogue addressed some of the key issues having to do with gangs in California and the steps being taken by schools, community groups, law enforcement and policy makers to curb gang activity. Students participating in the dialogue shared their experiences and concerns on these important issues. While we didn’t expect to solve any problems as a result of the dialogue, we hope that the dialogue gave young people a venue in which to communicate their concerns and ideas with policymakers, educators and community leaders. The simple act of joining the conversation on gangs was an important step in being an engaged member of our community and society at large. The dialogue identified three subject areas which guided the conversations: |
WebDialogues are produced by WestEd Interactive.
