Community Leadership and Gangs
August 24, 2009
Community leadership is:
1. Investigation – Knowing what the burning issues are, or the “community cry”, as I like to call it. This can be determined by surveys, focus groups and town hall meetings where the public is engaged to address local concerns that are directly affecting their quality of life.
2. Involvement – Community leadership need not be a “top down” structure. In fact, it is usually more effective when it is led by grassroots, or “bottom-up” leadership that comes from the unelected, un-bureaucratic strings that slow the process for taking action.
3. Investment – While it is true that something can be done about issues with little or no money, a lot more can be accomplished when those entities who control the community purse strings invest in the development of committees, strategic plans, and employees to implement the plans developed. This includes investors from both the public and private sectors of the community. The more private money the better, as, again, it usually does not come with all the strings that hinder and limit needed action.
4. Influence – Once the issues have been identified, plans have been discussed openly with any and all concerned and investors have been secured to hire employees to implement the plan, a campaign is needed to raise awareness, recruit volunteers and educate the constituents about the purpose, goals and objectives of the action plan to sustain it until the goals are achieved.
Using the above principles, my intention here is to raise awareness and focus the attention of community leadership on the local youth street gangs. The first principle of “Investigation” has been accomplished by many communities and does not need further elaboration here, except to say that those who decide to be involved with the gang issues should remain students, keeping up with all the changing data regarding gangs. As one writer put it, “if there is any constant in today’s gangs…it is their changing forms…”
Youth violence and street gangs continue to be a concern for many communities across the country. According to the National Gang Threat Assessment 2009, law enforcement now estimates there to be one million gang members in America! This is a substantial increase from the estimate of 760,000 in 2006. No one seems to be quite sure if the reason for the increase is because of an actual increase of youth joining gangs, more communities paying more attention to, or finally acknowledging their gang problem, or simply a faulty methodology for collecting accurate gang membership data. My guess is that it is some combination of all of the above.
For many communities, this “old problem” for others, is a new problem for them and they are searching for answers. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of answers to be found and it is more about learning what not to do, than what to do, that has been tried unsuccessfully by other communities. Most community’s first order of business has been to involve law enforcement. That is understandable given the crime associated with gangs. However, new gang communities should also learn that over time, law enforcement is not a solution to the gang problem, but only a normal and necessary reaction to the gang problem. In other words, if a crime is committed by any person or group of people, we expect law enforcement to react and do their work accordingly. But the problem does not end there, nor should it be expected to any more than chopping off weeds at the surface should be expected to end the problem of the weeds growing back. Nevertheless, many communities continue to go down this well trodden road of heavy suppression tactics to solve the gang problem. While suppression can provide a temporary “quick fix”, that gives our “front lawn” a neat and orderly appearance for awhile, in due season, the weeds grow right back.
The Roots of the Issue
Gangs exist for a reason. Youth are drawn to this destructive lifestyle for a reason. We may not like, agree with, or accept their reasoning, but gangs continue to exist and grow regardless, and that alone should cause us to step back and think more deeply about this gang phenomenon that continues to allude a solution. This is why I use the metaphor of “weeds”, because, like gangs, we have never been able to solve the weed problem and have come to simply accept it as a fact of life, rather than a problem that can be solved. Yes, we can solve it better in some places than others. We can replace real grass with astro-turf and rid ourselves of having to deal with the problem. But that solution is artificial and comes at the expense of giving up enjoying the nature of the real deal. In any case, in the end, weeds exist, will continue to exist and in some places thrive, due to environments beyond our ability to control. Unfortunately, the same can be said about gangs. As the professor of criminal justice at the University of Illinois, Chicago, author, and gang expert John Hagedorn says: “today’s gangs are not going away soon, no matter what we do.”
As I have studied, watched and been actively involved with the gang issue over the years, I suggest, that communities should view gangs, like weeds, as a fact of life, and not as a problem they can get rid of. I know that sounds pessimistic or maybe even cynical, but that is not my intention. My intention is to be realistic. Realistic about how feasible it is for communities to expect to put an end to the gang problem, when they can’t even solve its root causes:
1. Poverty – Statistics show that wherever there is poverty, there will be a high probability of gang spawning. The U.S. government declared a “war on poverty” decades ago, but we are not any closer to solving the problem of poverty. According to the United Nations, nearly one billion people live in slums, 12 million in the U.S. alone. And by 2020, the UN predicts that half of the world’s urban population will live in poverty.
2. Drugs – UN studies show that illegal drugs are a $400 billion global business equaling 8% of the global economy. And Professor Hagedorn tells us that, “In Chicago, like elsewhere in the United States, cocaine transformed gangs into economic enterprises”. Accordingly, drugs are a major motivator and a strong tool of recruitment for youth to join gangs and make quick cash.
3. Racism – Aside from the “normal” race issues our country has battled before and after the civil rights movement, racism has become a factor amongst the gang sub-culture, according to recent revelations from interviews and court documents with Mexican Mafia gang members and associates. Prison gangs are divided by race. Prison gangs continue to have influence over many local street gangs. According to the record, many seemingly “senseless” murders have been part of a Mexican Mafia ethnic cleansing initiative begun in the 1990’s.
4. Broken Families – The 50% divorce rate of married couples in America has been known for many years. In addition, we have also exposed many of the family secrets of abuse and neglect children suffer at the hands of their parents/guardians behind closed doors. Today, we are dealing with the attempt to re-define the nuclear family and the institution of marriage, which will certainly carry its own consequences (unintended or not). The bottom line is the effect all these things combined will have on the future health and happiness of our children and their children. By their own admission, an unhealthy home life is one of, if not the main reason, why youth join gangs in the first place.
Given the above root causes for creating gangs (and other negative lifestyles); I suggest being realistic is an important factor in determining community strategy. Approaching a problem to get rid of is a different mentality than approaching a fact of life. We all hope that the scourges of poverty, drug addiction, racism and dysfunctional families would disappear. Nevertheless, we have all had to learn to live with these things, and in many cases have been victims touched personally by one, two or all of the above.
Choosing Your Battlefield
By being realistic I do not mean to suggest giving in or giving up just because these facts of life are in our midst. Even Jesus said, “the poor you will always have with you”, but He did not mean to imply that we should do nothing about it, but simply to recognize it as something to acknowledge and deal with correctly, fairly, justly, reasonably. Thus, each community must do the same regarding gangs. It means that we shift our focus from the problems gangs create, to the problems that create gangs. We know what to do about the problems gangs create. That is the job of law enforcement. It is the root causes outlined above that communities often choose to neglect or acknowledge as battlefields that need more of our time, energy and resources.
I have no doubt your community has many fine leaders (perhaps you are one) and community organizations already in the trenches dealing with all of the root issues I mentioned and more. And if by chance you are not already involved, I pray this article has stirred something deep within you to cause you to consider joining the battle for the safety of your neighborhood or community with your family, friends and colleagues. Because the fact is, we are responsible for the quality of life in our community more so than the police or any other government agency.
My cousin recently wrote to me and said: “I’d like to ask, as an individual, what can I do? In my small city 4 miles square, there are so many gangs.”
The answer to that question is which battlefield is most important to you? Which issue is closest to your heart? Which problem strikes a chord within and ignites your passion to get involved? Once you decide that, you can either take part in a community focus group or forum (Investigation). Volunteer at a local nonprofit as a mentor or other place of service (Involvement). You might want to become an annual donor to one of the faith-based or nonprofits working in your particular areas of concern (investment). Finally, you might consider using your speaking or writing talents to attend city council meetings, or write a letter to the newspaper expressing your views and solutions. Believe me the words of voters do carry power with politicians! (Influence)
Now if you’re still not sure about what you can do, let me suggest the following: Community leadership starts in the home. This is why the role of parents and the influence we have on our children is so crucial to perpetuate and preserve any amount of safety we can expect in our neighborhoods. This is what I have chosen as my battlefield and I invite you to join me, along with many other “Parents on a Mission” (POM), as I call them, who are dedicated to their own personal growth in learning the required skills to raise happy, healthy children as the best gang prevention strategy any community can invest in. If you are not a parent, or a parent of small children, then you are the perfect candidate for enrolling in the POM leadership training. If you kids are already teens or older, this leadership training will still help you, as well as, help you to help others.
Join the leadership Movement for Gang Prevention
Finally, as with any community problem, leadership is the key. And, as mentioned earlier, leadership can come from anywhere and anyone in the community willing to invest their ideas, talent, and/or time and resources to ongoing efforts already in place. Or perhaps be part of initiating a new movement of creative solutions. However you decide to get involved, I can assure you that your leadership will make a difference and help improve your community and prevent more children from joining gangs than if you choose not to get involved at all.
If you are interested in learning more about “Parents on a Mission”, and joining me in our leadership movement for gang prevention, please visit:
www.richardrramos.com/gang-prevnetion
Sincerely,
Richard
Thought Leadership and Vision
April 15, 2009
“Where there is no vision, the people perish…” – Prov. 29.18
Drawing from this ancient wisdom, leaders of communities are reminded of the power, importance and influence that “vision” has on people. Every significant social cause or movement that has had a transitional impact on the status-quo of society can be traced back to a thought, an idea, and a vision that became a strong voice for and of the people. As we examine the important contributions made in service to people, whether they are great organizations, institutions or inventions of particular products, they all began in the mind of one person, or a group of people, who then proceeded to produce a strategy of implementation that gave voice to the vision.
During this time of economic uncertainty and with so much at stake, I cannot think of a more important time where a clear and wise vision is needed from leaders at every level of society. It is expected that a lot of rhetoric will be spoken from all our political leaders, but we should not depend solely upon government for the kind of direction needed on the ground in our day to day experience. Political leaders tend to point out problems, who or what is to blame and then follow with the rhetoric of promises for change.
However, we have watched this re-run picture so many times before only to be disappointed as the good intentions of the new elected leader always seem to get side tracked and then explained away as the establishment political machine does what it does best; cause politicians to break their campaign promises. How many times have we heard through the years that Washington Politics are “broken” and that “change” is needed, yet, our nation continues down the slope of over spending, national debt, and economic policies that favor globalism evidenced by more downsizing, lay-offs and manufacturing jobs transferred overseas? The truth is no one politician or President has the power to bring the kind of change needed and once in office they discover this and usually end up “playing ball” on the field of business as usual. This is not to say they did not have good intentions, but weighing re-election against breaking campaign promises usually favors the former. It seems to me that those with vision, good intentions and the best and brightest ideas, need to avoid public office in order to be effective in meeting the real needs of their community.
Vision and leadership is often thought of as coming from someone in charge of an organization or elected to public office. Or we assume that in order for someone to lead they must start their own organization to implement their ideas and vision. While that may be true in some instances, it need not always be the case. And while a thought leader does not necessarily have to be in charge of the people or organization, he or she must be willing to challenge the status-quo of dysfunction, ineffectiveness, stagnancy and/or inequality with a better idea. After all, vision and expertise are not only found at the administrative level. History has shown us that those on the front lines of community service also have a lot to offer by way of solutions relevant to the people they serve. I suggest one key for decision makers is learning how to tap this important resource of thinking that could prove to enhance the vision and bottom line of the community.
Leadership Through Relationships
January 13, 2009
There are two kinds of leaders; those who want to be liked and those who want to be respected. If you are respected but not liked, your leadership might be wanted, but it will probably be short lived. It is possible to be both respected and liked and we should strive for both.
Building relationships is one of the most important things we do in life on a personal and professional level.
Four thoughts on relationships and leadership:
1. Leadership can be defined in one word; Influence
2. Influence comes through relationship
3. Relationship determines the amount of influence
4. Relationship and influence determine the effectiveness of our ability to lead
You don’t have to be “thee” leader to lead an organization. Good relationships are the key to helping you lead from anywhere in or outside of any organization.
Principles of building relationships of leadership
A. Problem solving with problem people
1. Constantly cultivate a genuine love for people – One way of doing this is to constantly be grateful for what you have and constantly remind yourself of the grace you have received to be who you are.
2. Cultivate a genuine trust in people – Unless otherwise inhibited by an intuitive sense of caution, most people want to do the right thing and will be drawn to your transparency.
3. Always separate the person from the problem – Our message to others is always; “I have a problem with what you are doing, not with who you are”.
4. Most problems are not disagreements as much as misunderstandings -Avoid investing all your emotion in your view, opinions, and methods as it tends to leave little room for others.
5. One of the best ways to get others to “see” things from your point of view is to listen and seek to understand their point of view – This is done using the old Socratic method of asking sincere questions.
“Leaders see more in others than they see in themselves”
“Part of qualifying to stay in leadership is getting results”
B. Relationship through Authenticity
1. Show support for others interests by showing up
2. Smiling, acts of kindness and courteous deference go a long way with people
3. Keep a good sense of humor, mostly by being able to laugh at yourself
4. Communicate a positive, energetic and enthusiastic outlook on their work
5. Praise and compliment often
6. Be yourself
C. How to influence leaders to be follow you
1. Commitment to a cause that contributes to their significance as leaders.
2. A reputation for service that meets their needs and has established trust
3. Genuine passion and conviction
4. Opportunity to contribute and grow
5. No hidden agendas
6. Buy into and promote their agenda
7. Loyalty to the absent
8. Be a cut above in integrity and availability
9. Know how to follow through and “finish”
10. Promote the team, not yourself
11. Seek Feedback by:
• learning about those we serve
• learning from those we serve
• listening to those we serve
Concluding food for thought:
• Learning and listening are the emotional deposits and investments of time that bring big returns when it counts
• Discover creative ways to add value to our constituents
• Increase the points of contact to increase opportunities to meet their needs
• Ultimately this means more relationships would have to be broken for them to change to another’s leadership
