SOCIETY GETS BLAMED FOR KIDS JOINING GANGS

The increase in gang activity has been blamed on many factors, such as poverty, lack of parental guidance and the shortage of alternative activities for youths. But according to a counselor who has worked with teens for 20 years, societal attitudes may be as much to blame.

"We are socialized to think that violence might well solve a problem," said Karla Taylor Temple, a consultant for the Indiana Department of Education.

"For example, right before the Saudi Arabia stuff last year . . . I was working with about 20 gang members. They were males.

"And the first question they asked me was: `We're fighting over there over some oil, right?' I said, `Yeah.' They said, `Is it our oil?' I said, `No.' And they said, `Well, how much of it do we use?' I said, `About 10 percent.'

"So they felt it was a turf war _ the United States was going over there on someone else's turf (to) defend it. So (these kids said), `What's so different from them doing that and us fighting over turf in our neighborhood and using whatever firepower we have?' "

In addition to the message that the gang members perceived from the U.S. involvement in the Persian Gulf conflict, kids also see on television and learn through music that violence is one way to get what they want.

"You see the violence and money, and gangs give people the opportunity to pursue both of those. They pursue the violence, and they can make money via drugs and gun running," she said.

Temple worked with youths in Washington, D.C., until 1987, when she moved here. She interviews kids with gang problems and holds workshops for teachers so they can recognize gang symbols and behavior.

Although there is less gang violence in Indianapolis than in the nation's capital, she sees parallels.

"I started working with gang members in 1972-73 in Washington, and we're about at the stage that they were (in) then," she said. "It's just horrible out there (now)."

Officials were reluctant to acknowledge a gang problem when she first started working with kids here, let alone do much about it.

"The more I went to different officials and said, `We have a gang problem,' they kept pooh- poohing me and saying, `Oh no, it's not as bad as you think. We don't really have (a problem),' " she said. "I saw how inert some folks had become as far as trying to take care of the problem, and I kind of had to go on and start working with the kids, 'cause I didn't see other people doing that."

According to a Time magazine poll, 72 percent of the people surveyed said teen-age violence is caused by a lack of parental supervision.

"They have a family, but some of the families have become disjointed so (the gang) becomes their family," Temple said. "Both parents are working two jobs and trying to make it because of the economic situation. So (the kids) don't have a lot of time that they spend with their natural family. They look and see other ways to get positive reinforcement."

Kids also can hide their gang activity from their parents.

"Some of the kids also say that they're a different person out on the streets than they are when they are at home," Temple explained. "So you have some intact families that have no idea that their kids are involved in gangs because they walk a different walk when they go home."

In addition to the pro- violence messages kids receive, Temple believes their lack of faith in the future prompts them to join gangs.

"The biggest problem I see is the need to be violent and the inability to resolve conflicts that come up in their life without some type of violent means," she said.

"And also . . . the kids have very limited future self-vision _ meaning they don't see themselves doing anything substantial within the next 10 or 15 years, so they have a very cavalier attitude about their lives."

To combat gangs, Temple advocates educating parents about gang behavior so they can recognize the signs in their kids earlier. She also urges the judicial system to have consistent punishment for gang members and for communities to offer alternative activities for young people.

"If you set up a certain law that states if you commit a crime, the punishment's going to be such-and- such, you need to back that up," she said. "Which is not happening now. Some people get the maximum, others do not _ some people get a slap on the wrist. Kids need to know that Juvenile (the Juvenile Center) is not a joke."

An alternative to joining a gang is to get involved in other youth organizations. "I see Boy Scouts, Children's Express, all that as a gang," Temple said. "What differentiates some from the others is the illegal activity. Because even in Boy Scouts, you get together for a reason. It's for a sense of an alternative family, a sense of something to do, being with your friends, getting positive reinforcement.

Temple will continue to send her message to teens to stay clear of gangs.

"You need to think long and hard about participating in some type of group that would want to take complete control over your life," she said. "I think you would need to think about your own personal safety.

Kids should also consider how their involvement with gangs would affect their families. "Because when you make those decisions, you don't make them in isolation. Now if you decide to get out, it puts the (finger) on your parents, on your sisters.

Considering how challenging her job is, Temple still gives it a fresh start every day. "These kids are going to be our future. A lot of them are extremely intelligent and could be the leaders of tomorrow," she said. "It just makes me feel good to think that I'm having some influence on what's gonna happen in the next century."