Thursday, December 15, 2016

Saving Our Youth: The Comprehensive Anti-Gang Initiative


Symbol for the Gangster Disciples

The proliferation of gang problems in large and small cities, suburbs, and even rural areas led to the development of a comprehensive, coordinated response to America's gang problem by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP).

OJJDP has long supported a combination of activities, including research, evaluation, training and technical assistance, and demonstration programs, aimed at combating youth gangs. Since the 1980s, OJJDP has developed, funded, and evaluated community-based anti-gang programs that coordinate prevention, intervention, enforcement, and reentry strategies.

Recognizing that street gang activities transcend ages of members, in October 2009, the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) merged its existing resources to create a new National Gang Center (NGC), developing a comprehensive approach to reduce gang involvement and gang crime. The reinvigorated NGC is a single, more efficient entity, responsive to the needs of researchers, practitioners, and the public. The NGC website features the latest research about gangs; descriptions of evidence-based, anti-gang programs; and links to tools, databases, and other resources to assist in developing and implementing effective community-based gang prevention, intervention, and suppression strategies. There is also data analysis of the findings from nearly 20 years of data collected by the annual National Youth Gang Survey (NYGS) of 2,500 U.S. law enforcement agencies. Users can read and download publications related to street gangs, request training and technical assistance as they plan and implement anti-gang strategies, and register for a variety of anti-gang training courses. 

Click here for additional information. 

Source: ojjdp.gov

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