If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. Young gangsters distort Golden Rule: Do unto others tOl what they did to you . • • NATIONAL SCHOOL SAFETY CENTER NEWSJOURNAL FALL 1989 J 121384- U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Justice 123189 This document has been reproduced exactly as received from the person or organization originating it. Points of view or opinions stated in this documel',t are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the National Institute of Justice. Permission to reproduce this copyrighted material has been granted by Pepperdia g TJni vers i ty ~ationa1 School Safety Center to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS). Further reproduction outside of th6. NCJRS system requires permis­ sion of the copyright owner. · . v. "~ , - : i' _.' , '.~ ...., ~ ••. ~ ;,:. !', ~" ." '" ,I . .v '. '. CONTENTS SCHOOLNATIONAL. 4 When you're a Crip SAFETY CENTER (or a Blood) Peppardine University's National School Safety Center is j ~ 3 \ 3Y a partnership of the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Education. NSSC's goal is to promote safe schools free of drug traffic and abuse, gangs, 12 LA's gang busters weapons, vandalism and bullying; to encourage good discipline, attendance and community support; and lessons learned to help ensure a quality education for all children. By Suzanne Harper Ronald D. Siephens, Executive Director J~3\SS-- Stuart Greenbaum, Communications Director Ronald W. Garrison, Field Services Director 16 Gangs, guns and drugs James E. Campbell, Business Mannger Bernard James, Spacial Counsel By Ronald D. Stephens Pepperdlne University NSSC Steering Council: 1;?318Co David Davenport, President. Chair; William B. Adrian. Provost; Vice Chair,· Andrew K. Benton, Vice President, University Affairs; Nancy Magnusson·Fagan, Dean. 20 Gangsters: Back Graduate School of Education and Psychology; Ronald F. Phillips, Dean, School of Law; Charles B. Runnels, to the future Chancellor; Ronald D. Stephens, Executive Director, By Ronald W. Garrison NSSC; John G. Watson, Vice President, Student Affairs; and James R. Wilburn, Vice President and Dean, School 1;?3127 of Business and Management. _____._M~ _______==_ 23 Fighting crime for kids' sake School Safety By Karl Zinsmeister School Safety is published by the National School Safety IQ318~ Center to communicate current trends and effective pro· grams in school safety to educators. law enforcers, law· yers, judges, government ofticials, business leaders, 27 Troubled Asian youth: journalists and the public. Publication dates are Septem­ ber (Fall issue), January (Winter issue) and May (Spring The deafening silence issue). Annual subscription: $9.00. By Jeffrey J. Munks j ~ 3 I ~'l Ronald D. Stephens, Executive Editor Stuart Greenbaum, Editor/Art Director Brenda Turner, Suzanne Harper, Associate Editors Updates 2 NSSC Update Cynthia Randolph, Photocompositor Articles in this publication may be reprimed - excluding individually copyrighted material - with credit to School Safety, NSSC nnd a copy of reprints to NSSC. School 31 National Update Safety encourages the submission at original articles, artwork, book reviews and letters to the editor and wili review nnd consider each item for publication. 32 Legislative Update Correspondence for School Safety and the National School Safety Center should be addressed to: National School Safety Center, 16830 Ventura Boulevard, Suito 200, Encino, CA 91436, telephone 8181377-6200, FAX 8181377·6209. 33 Legal Update Prepared under Grant No. 8S·MU·CX'()()()3 from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Progrnms, U.S. Depanmenl of Justice. 34 Resource Update Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Education or Peppariine University. Resources 18 NSSC Resources Copyright © 1989 National School Safety Center. 19 NSSC Resource Papers About the cover: Gang "brothers" pose for this portrnit, proudly flnshing their gang hand sign. Photograph by Merrick Morton. 35 "Principals 01 Leadership" School Safety 3 Fall 1989 , l • •.•• •• . ..' . '. .. " , .." Be a "fly on the wall" at an unusually civilized meeting between members of LA's most notorious rival gangs­ the Crips and the Bloods. Get ready for an education. When you're a Crip (or a Blood) The drive-by killing is the sometime The following forum is based on a Getting jumped in sport and occasional initiation rite of discussion held at the Kenyon Juvenile LEON BING: Imagine that I'm a thir­ city gangs. From the comfort of a pass­ Justice Center in south-central Los An­ teen-year-old guy, and I want to get into ing car, the itinerant killer simply shoots geles. Parole Officer Velma V. Stevens a gang. How do I go about it? Am I down a member of a rival gang or an assisted in the arrangements. Leon Bing the right age? innocent bystander. Especially common served as moderator. among LA's Bloods and Crips, the LEON BING is a Los Angeles-based LI'L MONSTER: There's no age limit. drive-by killing is the parable around journalist. She is currently writing a It depends on your status coming into which every telling of the gang story book about teenage life in Los Angeles. it. It's like, some people get jumped in, revolves. Beyond that lies a haze of im­ LI'L MONSTER was a member of some people don't. ages: million-dollar drug deals, omi­ the Eight-Trey Gangsters set of the nous graffiti, and colorfully dressed Crips. He is twenty-three years old and BING: Jumped in? marauders armed with Uzis. The soci­ currently on probation; he has served ologists tell us that gang culture is the time for first-deglee murder, four counts LI'L MONSTER: Beat up. flower on the vine of single-parent life of attempted murder, and two counts of in the ghetto, the logical result of soci­ armed robbery. B-DOG: Either beat up or put some ety's indifference. It would be hard to RAT-NECK was a member of the work in. write a morality play more likely to l07-Hoover Crips. He is twenty-eight strike terror into the hearts of the mid­ years old and currently on probation RAT-NECK: Put some work in, that's dle class. after serving time for atte'mpted murder, mandatory, you know, a little mis [mis­ Many questions, though, go unasked. robbery with intent to commit grave demeanor] - small type of thing, you Who, really, are these people? What bodily harm, assault and battery, burg­ know. It's like this: say I get this guy urges them to join gangs? What are lary, and carrying concealed weapons. comin' up and he says, "Hey, Cuz, I their days like? To answer these ques­ TEE RODGERS founded the first Los wanna be from the set." Then I'm like, tions, Harper's Magazine recently asked Angeles chapter of the Chicago-based "Well, what you about, man? I don't Leon Bing, a journalist who has estab­ Blackstone Rangers, affiliated with the know you - you might be a punk." So lished relations with the gangs, to con­ Bloods. He is currently the resident I might send him somewhere, let him vene a meeting between two Bloods and "gangologist" and conflict specialist at go and manipulate, send him out on a two Crips and to talk with them about Survival Education for Life and Family, burg' or- the world in which the drive-by killing Inc., and an actor and lecturer. is an admirable act. B-DOG is a pseudonym for a twenty­ BING: - is that a burglary? three-year-old member of the Van Ness This article is an edited reprint by Gangsters set of the Bloods. After this LI'L MONSTER: Yeah. But then, you special permission from the March 1989 forum was held, his telephone was dis­ might know some person who's got a Harper's Magazine, copyright 1989. All connected, and he could not be located little juice, and, like, I might say, "You rights reserved. to supply biographical information. don't got to go through that, come on School Safety 4 Fall 1989 with me. You from the set." TEE: Keep in mind we don't have no we're rich. We're in high school and we target ranges where we get prolific with been buddies since grammar school. TEE RODGERS: If you click with these guns. And we all decide to go to the same somebody that's already from a set, college. Well, we all on the same street, then you clicked up, or under his wing, B-DOG: Shoot 'til you out of bullets, all those years, and we all just decide you his protege, and you get a ride in. then back up. to - Now, even though you get a ride in, there's gonna come a time when you RAT-NECK: Bullet ain't got no name, RAT-NECK: - join the gang. got to stand alone and hold your own. hit whatever it hit. TEE: What I think is formulating here BING: Stand alone and hold your own? TEE: Wait a minute! That was a hell of is that human nature wants to be ac­ Does that mean I might have to steal a a question, 'cause the mentality of the cepted. A human being gives less of a car or beat up somebody or commit a people that gonna read this be thinkin' - damn what he is accepted into. At that burglary? age - eleven to seventeen - all kids LI'L MONSTER: - every gang member want to belong. They are un-people. RAT-NECK: Right. walks around with that type of gun - BING: If you move - can you join BING: Is there another way? TEE: - and I can hear the police chief another set? saying, "That's why we need bazoo­ RAT-NECK: You can be good from the kas!" Look, put it on the record that LI'L MONSTER: A couple weeks ago I shoulders.