Gang Awareness... - Clothing Blog


	Gang Awareness...


	Submitted by admin on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 04:36
	A handful of parents take the offensive in Anderson County. They want to stop the growth of gang activity there before it hits too close to home. FOX Carolina's Jamie Guirola reports, the gang workshop held Monday at Westside High School was open to anybody in the public and the district sent home fliers with every child. In a high school gymnasium that can fit nearly two thousand people the small crowd of less then a hundred is commended for taking the initiative. Anne Merriweather: �One thing is classroom bullies, peer pressure. We have a lot of drugs in this school and a lot of drugs we don't know about�. Parents like Anne Merriweather and Melissa Canada are disturbed by one of this area's most recent and talked about crimes. Melissa Canada: �No, no I always think that like that's too far off�. In late August investigators say several young men fired at least 40 bullets into a crowd waiting outside Applebee's restaurant. One of those bullets went through a window and hit a woman in the leg. The senseless shooting believed to be gang related. Canada: �I have a child in middle school here growing up and stuff�. Merriweather: �I hope to be able to listen out for my child and especially things going on in the community�. There is no limit when it comes to gangs and how they operate. Some, recruiting seven and eight year olds to do their dirty work- and pay the time. Intervention, prevention, and education. That's the formula for reducing gang activity where you live. Strong: �We should not be burying our children because of some gang violence�. That kind of unwelcome activity, Strong says, can be reduced or eliminated when the whole community steps up to the plate. The F.B.I. says first you need to know what attracts people to gangs. Some attractions are boredom in life, the need for attention and desire to feel important. Then identify the gangs in your area through graffiti or clothing. Merriweather: �With me, my children, a lot of the kids like to come to my house. And I hear them just by listening, getting involved, hearing a lot of things they're saying�. This is cache, read story here [ login to post comments ]