October 2012 - Parks & Recreation - 12

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GANG PREVENTION

L.A. Parks Gang Up for Kids

T'S NO SURPRISE TO ANYONE that Los Angeles has its share of problems

with gang violence-the L.A. Police Department reports more than 450 gangs
and 45,000 current members, and they've veriﬁed more than 16,000 violent
gang crimes in the past three years, including homicides, felony assaults, robberies, and rapes. In many cases, gang recruitment begins as early as elementary
school, as younger children are more easily manipulated by older gang members
they idolize and wish to emulate.
Since gangs are often divided along
territorial neighborhood lines, and the
City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks (RAP) has facilities all
across the city, the agency saw a unique
opportunity to bring kids from different neighborhoods together and get
them to interact and build relationships, thus breaking down the " otherness " that's central to gang rivalry.
The RAP itself hadn't been immune

to gang violence-a former employee
was actually shot in the line of duty,
and the parks were often the scenes of
sometimes-bloody conﬂicts between
opposing gangs.
Karl Stephens and Gregory Thomas
of the RAP and Jack Foley of Los Angeles People for Parks conceived the
initial idea, naming it the Watts Cluster
Project to capture the unifying theme
of the initiative. The goal was to use

recreation programs to bring together
kids from the often-warring housing
projects of Nickerson Gardens, Jordan Downs, and Imperial Courts, all
located within the Watts community in
southern Los Angeles. The ﬁrst events
were held in 2009, and since then, the
program has become a popular social
outlet for at-risk kids aged 8 to 14. Even
better, gang and crime statistics have
shown a marked decline since the advent of the project.
" Over the past three years, we have
serviced more than 400 youth in our
program, " Thomas says, noting that
participation has increased 10 to 15 percent each year. There has also been a
" 20 percent decrease in gang activity
among youth participating in our program, a 15 percent decrease in gang violence during the hours the youth are
participating, and improved attitude
during school hours among youth participating in our program, i.e., they are
less likely to get into gang-motivated
conﬂicts, as a result of their participation, " he says.
Program sports include basketball,
baseball, soccer, ﬂag football, and more,
and organizers intentionally mix kids
from different neighborhoods together
on teams to decrease the perceptions
they might have had about youth from
other areas. Program participants can
also take part in sponsored ﬁeld trips,
ranging from kayak excursions on the
shore to a day at Universal Studios.

Los Angeles youth try new activities and
broaden their circle of friends as part of the
Watts Cluster Project.

Parks & Recreation

| OCTOBER 2012 | WWW.NRPA.ORG

LOS ANGELES DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND PARKS

BY DANIELLE TAYLOR

October 2012 - Parks & Recreation

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