Gangs aren’t all bad. Think of them as misguided social clubs. Originating from a need to police neighborhoods because cops wouldn’t, gangs were birthed to help the community. Their inception was a direct response to social stimuli. The 60’s and 70’s featured gangs with a revolutionary mindset. They were greatly influenced by Black Power groups like the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, in fact, most were members. After COINTELPRO destroyed the Panthers, black youth have seemed to be something akin to lost sheep. From the 80’s to the present, gangs have primarily been used to employ those who have lost faith in the system.
Mass incarceration, terrible education, poor housing conditions, and high unemployment are just some of the many symptoms of the current economic system which has seen better days. I have no right to pass judgement on how some have chosen to cope with these systemic issues, yet as a member of the community affected by their actions, I have a duty to help in anyway possible. A multitude of conscious people see the horrors taking place, but have no idea how to fix and see very little option to direct their energy. The elephant in the room seems to be whether capitalism itself is to blame for our predicament. Confusingly, the answer is yes and no.
Analogous to the argument ‘guns don’t kill people, people kill people’, one may choose to say ‘capitalism doesn’t disadvantage people, people disadvantage people. Capitalism, in and of itself, is not responsible for our problems. Like guns, capitalism is a means to an end. If truly intent to do so, a person will kill another regardless of whether guns are present. If someone is truly intent on oppression, they will oppress another regardless of whether capitalism exists. People have been oppressed in feudal systems and communist systems. Any means of bartering and trading allows for the possibility that someone will take advantage of another.
Our social problems originate deeper than what system is chosen to direct transactions between different parties in a market. The only way to resolve the problems we face is to do so together; they are, after all, OUR problems. The first step that must be taken in this endeavor is helping people to realize the power they possess individually and as a group. A group is nothing more than the sum of it parts; a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. If we are to positively affect change, we must do individually first. This is done by getting to know oneself psychologically, physically, spiritually, and biologically. As a close friend of mine loves to say, ‘ if trouble arises on an airplane, you put on your oxygen mask before trying to help other people’.
Once we have come to truly know ourselves, we are able to draw conclusion from that knowledge and apply it to the world around us. We are microcosms of the world! Just as our bodies have interconnected systems, so to do cities, states, countries, the earth, solar systems, galaxies, an universes. Getting to know ourselves allows us this supreme realization. There is an interconnectedness binding us all; recognition of this fact will lead to better decision making. When it becomes common knowledge we are connected, one can no longer dump toxins in a river without an afterthought or curse out a cashier because its been a really hard day.
The conscious must speak up! We have been lead to believe that there aren’t others on the same wave length as us. There are far more people aware than one would think. The problem we face is what i like to call “the school dance syndrome”. No one wants to get on the dance floor first, yet everyone wants to boogie. Must we sit and wait for the next charismatic leader? The past makes it seem as if nothing of importance will get done unless a figure gets involved. “If you are lead to the promised land, then someone can lead you away. If you find your own way, you will never get lost”. ‘Leaderless’ movements like Occupy have become possible because many the many different forms of communication we now have. Unless there is a blatant suppression, how will the government silence a movement which acts like a hydra? As soon as one head is cut off, two must rise to take its place.
I guess in a round about way I am saying that I do not look down on gang-affiliated youth for doing what they felt they need to for survival, but I do believe that now is the time to change the conditions which steered them into that path. We have the power to do it, we always have, and we always will. The only thing we need is a little courage and willingness to be the first one to step out on the dance floor. If everyone else thinks the same way, we shall all step forward in unison. If only a few do, then I won’t be alone. If I so happen to be the only one with the courage to step forward, I hope my courage stirs within you the courage you need to do the same. Draw from my strength, hold me up when I fall, and I will do the same for you.