DO THE RIGHT THING: Finding Solutions for the Causes of Gang Violence

October 25, 2002

DO THE RIGHT THING
Finding Solutions for the Causes of Gang Violence

Grades: 6-8, 9-12

Subjects: Language Arts, Social Studies

Related New York Times Article
"Los Angeles Police Chief Faces a Huge Challenge, By CHARLIE LeDUFF,", October 25, 2002

Overview of Lesson Plan:: In this lesson, students will consider the relationship between gang violence and the factors that can contribute to its increase. After researching the issues behind one such factor, students will make recommendations for implementing changes in local government, law enforcement, and other local agencies, that may help reduce gang violence.

SUGGESTED TIME ALLOWANCE: 45 minutes - 1 hour

OBJECTIVES:
Students will:

Respond to a quote about gang violence.
Learn about the increasing gang problem in Los Angeles by reading and discussing the article " Los Angeles Police Chief Faces a Huge Challenge."
Brainstorm factors that contribute to gang violence; research the association between one of these factors and gang violence.
Write a section of their group's recommendation; in a later class, edit and compile sections.

RESOURCES / MATERIALS:

newspapers (one per group)
pens/pencils
paper
classroom board
copies of the article "Los Angeles Police Chief Faces a Huge Challenge" (one per student)
computers with Internet access (one per group)

ACTIVITIES / PROCEDURES:

WARM-UP/DO NOW: Prior to class, write the following quote on the board: "The afternoon that William J. Bratton was confirmed as police chief {of Los Angeles}, a man was beaten to death in the South-Central section of this sprawling megalopolis. Robbie Hanzy, an unemployed member of the Rolling 60's Crips gang, was killed by his brother Alton, also an unemployed member of the Rolling 60's, the police said. The fight, the authorities said, was precipitated by an afternoon filled with alcohol and by two men with nothing better to do." Have students respond to the following prompt (written on the board prior to class): If you were William J. Bratton, how would you feel about this news? What might you do, as police chief, to try to reduce gang violence?
As a class, read the article "Los Angeles Police Chief Faces a Huge Challenge" focusing on the following questions:
1. What happened the day that William J. Bratton was confirmed as police chief of Los Angeles?
2. How many homicides are projected for the South-Central precinct for this year? How does this compare to previous years?
3. What are the different opinions of Mr. Bratton?
4. How is the situation in Los Angeles different than it was in New York when he was police chief there?
5. Why was the Rampart Division disbanded? How has this affected the police force?
6. What is the broken windows theory?
7. What are the factors that increase gang violence, according to Jeremy Travis?
8. According to Bob Rifkin, what are the two issues that need to find a proper balance in society?
As a class, brainstorm factors that are associated with gang violence, based on the information from the article and students' own knowledge (some factors include economy, size of police force, number of criminals on parole, overall approach of police department to policing, and type of discipline for police officers.) Divide students into five groups, assigning each group one of these factors. Each group represents a "think tank" assigned to study this factor and make recommendations to the Los Angeles city council about how this factor can be handled to reduce gang violence. Groups should research historical precedents in the United States for the relationship between this factor and violence. Questions (written on the board for easier student access) to keep in mind during research include:
- What aspects of this problem can be changed through a change in policies, behaviors, etc? What aspects of this problem cannot be changed and must be dealt with as they are?
- How has this problem been dealt with in the past? Which of these tactics may be useful in the current situation? Which of these tactics do not effectively address the issues involved in the current situation?
- What new innovations in this area might help reduce gang violence? Why do you think these innovations might be successful?
Before the end of class, groups assign each group member to one specific, practical suggestion that the group will offer (groups should make as many suggestions as there are group members). Examples of practical suggestions include: having monthly job fairs in areas with high gang activity (economy) or providing bonuses to police officers in gang areas (size of police force).
WRAP-UP/HOMEWORK: At home, students each write their portion of their think tank's recommendation. Each section should include an explanation of the suggestion and how it would be implemented, the historical precedents for this suggestion, and an explanation of why this suggestion would be successful given the current situation. In a later class, groups reconvene and review each other's work, editing as needed.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

Why do you think so many young people in South-Central are in gangs? What does a gang have to offer that makes it an attractive choice for some people?
Do you think that police officers should be given more latitude in dealing with a chronic problem like gangs? What problems might this cause?
Have you ever been affected by gang violence? If so, how did this experience affect your understanding of gangs? If not, how do you think you would react to such an experience?
Is there a gang problem in your city/town? If so, what do you think are the causes? If not, why do you think this might be?
What would your crime prevention strategy be if you were the chief of police in an area with heavy gang activity?

EVALUATION / ASSESSMENT:
Students will be evaluated on completion of Warm-up, participation in class discussion, participation in group research, completion of their section of groups recommendations.

VOCABULARY:
confirmed, sprawling, megalopolis, precipitated, precinct, innovative, stewardship, demoralized, inverse, chronic, boroughs, unrehabilitated, volatile

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:

You have been hired to teach one class in an eight-week naturalization course. The class is entitled: The United States Penal System. Create a lesson plan that incorporates an explanation of the United States prison system, as well as an explanation of the relevance of prison-related terms, such as life sentence, death sentence, parole, rehabilitation, good behavior, and white-collar crime.
Write a series of diary entries in the voice of a young person who is turning to gangs. In the entries, suggest the possible social and economic factors that would lead such a person to join a gang, and illustrate how gang affiliation affects young people's lives.
Learn about the recent history of policing that has led to stricter rules regarding the latitude given police officers. Create a timeline beginning with the beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles and the subsequent riots in 1992, and tracing the events that have had an impact on this change. Make sure to address issues such as racial profiling, renegade police officers, and government investigations. Then write a short analysis of whether you think this change in policing is for the good or whether it is detrimental to public safety.
Compare the 1990s to the 2000s in terms of gang violence, as well as in terms of overall violent activity around the world. Consider factors such as the number of guns owned nationwide and worldwide, terrorist attacks, civil wars around the world, and other violent activity. Create a poster illustrating your comparisons. Then write an analysis of the factors that you think have contributed to the changes you observed. Also predict the role you think violence will play in the rest of this decade.
Learn about the role of women in gangs. Interview female gang members or ex-members, as well as law enforcement officials to learn about how women get involved in gangs, what their roles are, and what percentage of gang related deaths, arrests, and other statistics are attributed to women. Write an expose for your school or local newspaper based on your findings.

INTERDISCIPLINARY CONNECTIONS:
Civics- Consider the following quote from the article: "There is a whole latitude of policing within the law. But society has to decide the balance between safety and civil rights. How much of one are you willing to sacrifice for the other?" Conduct a class debate on the extent of this sacrifice. One side should be in favor of increased safety at the expense of civil rights, while the other should advocate increased civil rights, despite possible affects on public safety.

Economics- Learn about the relationship between gangs and the economic situation of the neighborhoods in which they are prevalent. Write an essay addressing the following questions: What correlation is there between economics and gang activity? How does gang activity affect the local economy? How might a gang artificially stimulate the local economy? How does this further the growth of gang activity in such an area?

Global History- Learn about the cause of homicide around the world. Research three countries from three different geographical regions and create a poster showing the prevalent causes of homicide in this country (or a specific city in this country- e.g. gangs, vigilante groups, civil warfare, etc) and how the government attempts to deal with this problem (or is part of he problem, in some cases).

Health- Interview people to learn about the kind of music that makes them feel aggressive, calm, angry, sad, etc. Also prepare samples of different types of music (hip hop, rap, pop, classical, etc) and ask people what their responses are to the music. Use this information to design a study aimed at answering the following question: What is the relationship between popular music in gang areas and gang-related violence? Using the steps of scientific method, complete the "hypothesis," "materials," and "procedure" sections of your study. If possible (taking into account time and resource restraints), conduct your study and complete the "data" and "conclusions" section.

Media Studies- Watch "New Jack City," "Boyz in the Hood," or another film that focuses on gangs. Then write an essay addressing the following questions: How do such movies affect our perception of gangs and gang neighborhoods? How do you think these movies affect the people living in these neighborhoods? Do you think is makes them proud to live there? More fearful? Overall, do you think such movies advocate changes for the better or glorify the status quo?