Troubled Teens Resources

Are middle school age adolescents vulnerable to the attraction of gangs? Does it really start so young? Yes, unfortunately, most teen crisis intervention has to start well before a child enters his teens, in fact, pre-teens are as vulnerable to the cultural hype as their high school counterparts. That’s why new programs for troubled teens about gang recruitment now are aimed at middle school.

“The presence of Tracy’s Gang Task Force at Monte Vista Middle School on Tuesday morning was akin to putting out a grass fire before it becomes an inferno, officials said.

While officers said that the school was far from being a hotbed of gang activity, they were quick to note that middle school years are when students are most vulnerable to being recruited by a gang.

“This is the time when they start seeing it and it starts to become normal to them. The real danger is when they feel that joining a gang is the normal thing to do,” said officer Ricardo Hernandez. “We want to get the message to them now before they hit the high school level.”

The presentation included detailed photos of gang activity and members, a drug dog demonstration and stark descriptions of what that lifestyle is really all about.

“It really hits them when they start seeing pictures of gang members here in Tracy,” Hernandez said. “Then they realize it is happening all around them and not just on television.”
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It depends on what part of the country that you live in, but many teen crisis intervention efforts are directed towards youth in gangs. As traffic continues to moves freely across our Southern borders, gangs are starting to proliferate in areas of the country that never had problems before. With gangs come the usual problems with teen drug substance abuse, crime, murders and abuse of young teen girls.

“Acts of violence and crime are on the rise in St. George due to an increase in gang activity as more gang members are moving to the area, and more kids are becoming involved with these gangs.

Ex-gang member Alii Alo is reaching out to the youth in schools and on the streets. He has seen firsthand the devastation that comes with gang affiliation. Alo, known as Bear on the streets, co-created Team RAW in 2003 with Tami Fullerton. They saw the need for an organization that offers an alternative to the gang lifestyle by providing activities for at risk youth, developing friendships with the kids, and building a rapport with current gang members.”
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Team RAW, like so many community efforts is in need of funding. Staff is short and there isn’t enough money to conduct the type of outreach the founders wish to perform. This is where parents can play a part by being pro-active for their teen’s safety. Gangs are a danger to an entire city, not just the parts of town that they control. When parents demand safety from their law enforcement, they also need to see what they can contribute to community efforts like RAW.