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This document is archival in nature and is intended Le présent document a une valeur archivistique et for those who wish to consult archival documents fait partie des documents d’archives rendus made available from the collection of Public Safety disponibles par Sécurité publique Canada à ceux Canada. qui souhaitent consulter ces documents issus de sa collection. Some of these documents are available in only one official language. Translation, to be provided Certains de ces documents ne sont disponibles by Public Safety Canada, is available upon que dans une langue officielle. Sécurité publique request. Canada fournira une traduction sur demande. HV 6439 .C2 M3 1993 14 V 3'1 Government Gouvernement II*11 of Canada du Canada • C..."P„ M 3 19'13 Frederick Mathews, Ph.D., C.Psych. Community Psychologist Central Toronto Youth Services YOUTH GANGS ON YOUTH GANGS No. 1993-24 ,rom■ _ LIBRARY I 01■ 1 - _ SOLICITOR MERAL CANADA mAv on 1995 • MAI •,ig e,-*-- go. ,fir.10TeUe e\je Brighter SOLLiv°rum GrEMet proven) CA,ADA K1A 1 b Futures The views expressed in this working paper are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Ministry of the Solicitor General of Canada or of the Department of Justice Canada who provided the funding for this project. Ce document de travail est disponible en français. Copyright Minister of Supply and Services Canada Cat. No. JS4/1-1993-24E ISBN 0-662-21145-6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Acknowledgements v Introduction 1 An Overview of Related Literature 3 Method of Enquiry 9 Chapter 1 YOUTH PERCEPTIONS OF GANGS/GROUPS AND YOUTH VIOLENCE 13 Perspectives on Youth Violence 13 Is the Problem of Youth Gangs/Groups Serious? 13 Youth Gangs/Groups In Schools 14 What is a Gang? 15 Chapter 2 1 GETTING INVOLVED IN YOUTH GANGS/GROUPS 17 Unintentional Gang/Group Formation - "Drift" 17 Intentional Gang/Group Formation Protection and Safety Power and Control Through Intimidation Who is More Vulnerable to the Lure of Gangs/Groups? Youth from Wealthy Families Differences Between Males and Females Gangs/Groups as "Family" Youth Don't Really Know what they're Getting Into Unemployment and Money as a Motivator Involvement of Youth Under 12 Years of Age Influence of the Media, Music, Videos Youth Perceptions of Recent Change in Youth Gangs/Groups and Violence 24 i TABLE OF CONTENTS (Cont'd) Page Chapter 3 YOUTH GANG/GROUP ACTIVITIES 26 Illegal Activities 26 Weapons 26 Drugs 27 How Gang/Group Members See Their Illegal Activities 28 Involvement in Illegal Gang/Group Activity is Fun 29 Fear of Getting Caught is no Deterrent 29 Inter-Racial Gang/Group Conflict 30 Gangs/Groups that Other Gangs/Groups are Afraid Of 30 Opinions About the Young Offenders Act 31 How Serious Youth Gang/Group Activity Can Get 32 Leaving a Gang/Group 32 The Personal Consequences of Youth Gang/Group Involvement 33 Chapter 4 HOW TO RFSPOND: SOME SUGGESTIONS FROM YOUTH GANG/GROUP MEMBERS 35 Suppressing Gangs/Groups and Prohibiting Gang/Group Formation 35 Police 35 Schools 36 Social Services 37 Government 38 Parents 39 What Does the Future Look Like 40 The Last Word 40 Chapter 5 YOUTH GANGS/GROUPS: COMPARING THE VIEWS OF POLICE, SCHOOL OFFICIALS, SOCIAL WORKERS, PARENTS, VICTIMS, AND YOUTH 41 Youth Violence is a Problem 41 Youth Gangs/Groups are a Serious Problem 42 Gangs/Groups are a Problem in Schools 42 Victims are Reluctant to Report 43 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Cont'd) Page Chapter 5 (Cont'd) Kids Mistrust and Have Lost Faith in Adults and Systems 43 Schools are Reluctant to Admit There's a Problem 44 Involvement in Criminal Activity Defines a "Gang" 45 Youth Join Gangs/Groups to Achieve Power, Self-Confidence 46 Being in a Gang/Group Provides Protection and Safety 46 The Value of Gang/Group Names Varies 47 Some Youth are More Vulnerable to the Lure of Gangs/Groups 47 Youth from Wealthy Families Also Get Involved 48 Females in Gangs/Groups Abuse Power and are Violent 48 Gangs/Groups are Like a "Family" 49 Youth Don't Really Know What they're Getting Into 49 Earning Money is a Motivator 50 Youth Under 12 are Involved in Gang/Group Activity 50 Influence of the Media, Music, Videos 51 Gangs/Groups are Involved in a Wide Range of Illegal Activities 51 Weapons are Common 52 Drugs Have Become a Part of the Problem 52 Involvement in Illegal Activities is "No Big Deal" to Youth 53 Involvement in Gangs/Groups and Illegal Activity is Fun 53 Fear of Getting Caught is no Deterrent 54 Gangs/Groups Typically Victimize Younger, Smaller Youth 54 Inter-Racial Conflict is Becoming a More Serious Problem 55 Gangs that Other Gangs/Groups are Afraid of 55 The Y.O.A. Needs to be Modified and Better Promoted 56 Leaving a Gang/Group can be Easy or Difficult 56 The Problem has Increased in Recent Years 57 Youth Gang/Group Activity Can Get Very Serious 58 The Need for an Enhanced Role for Police 58 Schools Must Acicnowledge and Confront the Problem 59 Social Services Can Play an Important Support Role 60 Government Must Act 61 Parents Have The Most Important Role to Play 62 The Need for Community Partnerships 63 Unless we Intervene the Problem will Continue to Escalate 63 Summary of Youth and Adult Participants' Views 64 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Cont'd) Page Chapter 6 DISCUSSION Defining the "Problem" Defining "Gangs/Groups" An Exploratory Typology of Youth Gangs/Groups The Gang/Group Involvement Cycle An Interactional Model of Youth Gang/Group Crime and Violence Media Origins of the Phenomenon Power and Control Responding to Youth Gangs/Groups Enhancing the Role of Police Schools Social Services Government Freedom Without Limits has a Dark Side Addressing the Social and Systemic Chapter 7 SUMMARY OF PARTICIPANTS' RECOMMENDATIONS 94 Chapter 8 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH 99 Appendices "A" References 101 "B" The Guelph Community's Response to Youth Gangs/Groups and Youth Violence 104 "C" Interview Guides 106 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author wishes to gratefully acknowledge the support and assistance of Joan Fisher, Solicitor General Canada. This exploratory descriptive study was made possible by the Solicitor General and the Department of Justice with funding from the Brighter Futures and Family Violence Initiatives, respectively. The project was a collaborative effort between federal and Ontario government ministries, schools, police, young people, parents, victims, social service agencies, and other community partners. Study Advisory Committee Lorri Biesenthal Department of Justice Canada Lenna Bradburn Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General Elaine Broadley North York Board of Education Steve Duggan Metropolitan Toronto Police Mike Faye Central Toronto Youth Services Joan Fisher Solicitor General Canada John Fleischman Department of Justice Canada Lew Golding Youthlink - Scarborough Tom McCallum Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General Gord Rasbach Metropolitan Toronto Police April Takeda Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General Special thanks to Chief Richard Stewart and Sergeant Rod Curran_ of the Guelph Police Force for their support and generous contributions of time to the study. Thanks to the following persons for their invaluable contributions to the research: John Aiken, Tom Archibald, Jorhdin Banner, Tony Caines, Tom Cameron, Moira Cassidy, Dave Clark, Joe Conroy, Paul Deeves, Rod Hayward, Gerry LeRoy, Pat Marshall, Dave Nolan, Colleen Ryan, Murray Shannon, and Judy Tollifson. Most important of all, thanks to the young people who participated in the study and gave freely of themselves in the interest of supporting and helping other youth. Your courage and candidness provides an example to all who care about the safety and well-being of young people. F.M. v INTRODUCTION ..... "Wake up and look around. Look at what everything is turning into. " (Tim, 16) Youth gangs/groups are not a historically new phenomenon in Metropolitan Toronto, nor are they unique to North America. In England, Japan, and Hong Kong the phenomenon of gangs is centuries old. Gangs have been reported in many countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and in Australia, in communist countries and capitalist democracies. It is likely that there are some similarities between youth gangs/groups of today and those of decades and centuries past. Marginalization, poverty, and disenfranchisement is a common experience among youth of most societies, especially young persons who are members of "out" groups such as the lower class or ethnic and religious minorities. Using non-sanctioned or illegal means to meet sustenance and other material needs is universal where grinding poverty is present. However, a majority of young people involved in gangs/groups today are not living in poverty nor are they all from marginalized groups in Canadian society. It is hard to determine conclusively if youth crime and violence, for whatever reason, is truly a serious and growing problem. A recent Canadian study reveals that between 1986 and 1991 violent offence charges for youth 12 - 17 increased by over 106% (Canadian Social Trends, 1992). However, violent crime represents only about 15% of all youth crime.