Gangs? Not My Kid!

A Tip Sheet for Parents

Children join gangs and commit vandalism or violent acts due to a need to belong to someone or something. Children who join gangs are as young as 14, sometimes younger. Gang membership, especially among hard-core members is strongly tied to drug use, sexual activity, violence and crime. It's a difficult cycle to break.

Parents can protect their children from a gang's influence:

• Spend time with each of your children to help convince them that they are an important part of the family.
• Supervise your children's activities. Make sure a reliable adult is present at all functions.
• Help your children get involved in athletics or other group activities that interest them so they can feel they belong.
• Talk with your children about your values. Let them know why you think gangs are dangerous. You should mention the following:
• Constant threat of violence, either to gang members or to innocent bystanders.
• Hatred of other groups for no reason.
• Drug use, which leads to its own problems.
• Increased chance of being arrested.
• Teach your children what to do if gang members approach them. The best response is to walk away. Warn children not to respond with the same gesture - the gang members may be "false flagging," using a sign of a rival gang. The response could be a violent one.

It's possible, if there is gang activity in your area, that your children may become involved. Often parents don't recognize their children's gang activity until it is too late, such as when they children are hard-core members. How can you tell if your children are involved?

• Be on the lookout for signs of possible gang involvement: change in a child's type of friends, changes in dress habits, such as wearing the same color combination all the time or purchasing a gang sweater or jacket, secretiveness about activities, new-found affluence from unknown sources, changes in behavior and diminishing interest in the family and school. An even more reliable, but often ignored, sign of gang activity is if a child is arrested or detained by the police
• If you notice these patterns, you can get help. Contact the gang crimes unit of your police department. The unit may be able to help you find counseling and tell you how to help your child.

Used with permission from The National PTA®, 330 North Wabash Avenue, Suite 2100, Chicago, Illinois 60611-3690

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