Community support needed to fight youth gangs: CPO
Posted Nov 27, 2009 By Rosalyn Stevens
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Tweet ThisEMC News Ottawa needs to do more to keep youth from joining gangs, according to a report released recently by Crime Prevention Ottawa (CPO).
The report, Community Cohesion and Youth Gang Prevention in Six Priority Areas, was written for CPO by Carleton University professor Katharine Kelly. It outlines the features of six communities in Ottawa, from west to south to east, and the features in each area designed to prevent youth from participating in gang activity. Among the findings, the report also notes that neighbourhoods in the west and south end of the city top the charts for youth gang activity across the city. Those neighbourhoods include Bayshore, Britannia Woods, and Foster Farm in the west, and the Banff-Ledbury community in the south.
Created through the Ottawa Youth Gang Prevention Initiative (OYGPI), the document outlines four strategies to prevent the impacts of gang activity in Ottawa and, further, to prevent youth from joining gangs.
"What we were seeking to do is develop an understanding of youth gangs in Ottawa and examine very specific communities," explained Nancy Worsfold, executive director of CPO. "We took neighbourhoods and did a deep analysis of what's going on in these neighbourhoods."
The strategies include enhancing community cohesion, through blatant displays of community interaction such as celebrations, clean-up activities, and Neighbourhood Watch programs. Prevention, through youth activities and supports, is another element within the strategy, as is intervention.
The strategy notes that intervention with youth who show early signs of gang-related behaviour could prevent further decline.
"This can include exit programming, intensive employment programming, programs for suspended or expelled students, mental health programs ... and other interventions," the report reads.
Ms. Worsfold said the top two regions identified in the report showed a need for improved applications of the strategy guidelines in order to reduce and prevent youth gang activity.
"In those neighbourhoods there is a need to engage youth," she said.
Const. Maria Keen, community police officer for the Bayshore area, said it would take a concerted effort from all members of the community to fight back against gang activity in Ottawa. As well, she said the reality of gangs in Ottawa is that the members are very fluid, moving from one part of the community to another, making it difficult for police to pinpoint who is causing problems at any given time.
She added that the Ottawa Police Service focuses on getting to know who the members are of each gang and what they are doing, rather than looking at the gang as a whole. It's for that reason, explained Const. Keen, that not all criminal activity in the city can be pinpointed on gangs as much as it can be traced to individuals.
"From a public perspective, they all of a sudden jump to the conclusion it's a gang thing," she noted.
In her role as a community police officer, Const. Keen said she is focused on the crime prevention aspect, which includes preventing youth from joining gang activities.
After school programming and crime prevention work needs to focus on the younger children, teaching them about the realities of crime before they reach the targeted age for youth gang activity.
"It's sad to say, but having these programs ... for older youth, at that point they're almost so far gone it's hard to change," Const. Keen added.
What really needs to happen is a collective effort from the community, joining forces with police, to change the habits of youth.
"We're the largest gang out there police," she said. "We're always going to be there. We know what our goals are and what our roles are. It's up to the community to find out where they fit into this."
Bay ward Coun. Alex Cullen said the report reaffirms the fact that gang activity exists and that youth need to be redirected from joining. He said city recreational programming, along with health and family services, are some of the ways the municipality can step in.
"The good news is that our staff have the resources to deal with this problem," he said.
The Community Development Framework (CDF) is one initiative the city has put in place to assist residents in at-risk communities.
The program is currently underway in Bayshore and Carlington.
Greg Killough, a health promoter overseeing the CDF at the Carlington Community Health Centre, said concerns about gang activity have increased during the initial community survey portion of the exercise. During the next phase, which includes consultation with area residents, the task will be to seek solutions for residents and provide information for parents to help prevent their children from joining gangs.
Const. Keen said it's the community effort that will make a difference. While many residents express concern about youth activity and problems in the community, she noted that they need to take that extra step to become involved in the solution.
"Stop fearing the worst and be a role model," Const. Keen said.
"The other way to look at it is that these same people, the adults, they might learn something from the youth."
Coun. Maria McRae, who represents River ward, said she is proud to see programs like the CDF in place for residents to take a proactive role in reclaiming their community. With assistance from city services and programs, like youth on the move, she said residents could change the trend of youth gang activity.
Despite the city's financial crunch, Coun. McRae said recreational programmers at the city need to find the best way to spend their budgets to serve the community.
"It's not always about getting more money," she said.
"It's about spending the current dollars in different places."
For more information, or to read the CPO report, see www.crimepreventionottawa.ca.
