Latino Youth Gang Prevention for Dual Status Youth Stakeholders

Youth gang involvement is a serious public health concern with significant implications for the youth involved. The National Gang Center estimates that about one-third of gang members are adolescents, and law enforcement agencies report a greater percentage of Hispanic/Latino and African-American/black gang members compared with other races/ethnicities. Youth who become involved in gangs are at a greater risk of experiencing violence, being victimized, and becoming involved in the juvenile justice system. Combined, these factors contribute to many long-term problems, including substance use, dropping out of school, unstable employment, possible incarceration, and even early death.  

Many factors contribute to a youth’s willingness or desire to join a gang, including a need for belonging, lack of mainstream representation, status, and limited opportunities for future earning and employment. The intersecting traumas and stressors of the historical oppression and systemic discrimination experienced by many Hispanic and Latine youth and their families make these youth especially vulnerable. Risk factors for gang involvement can be grouped into “push” factors that drive youth away from the mainstream and “pull” factors that pull youth toward gang involvement.  

This training will help professionals working with youth understand the push and pull factors and how to counter these factors. This session will provide concrete prevention and intervention strategies at a system-wide and individual level. Further, several factors that contribute to youth leaving gangs will be examined. Finally, two case studies will be presented with an opportunity for participants to practice aligning risk factors with strategic interventions.  

Objectives 

After this training, participants will be able to 

• Describe how minoritized status can put youth at an increased risk of contact and/or involvement with gang activity. 

• Describe why adolescence is a particularly vulnerable time for gang involvement and how involvement in child welfare and/or juvenile justice systems can exacerbate these vulnerabilities. 

• Define and discuss the 8 Push and Pull risk factors for gang involvement in the context of dual-status youth. 

• Understand how to align risk factors with case management strategies and therapeutic interventions. 

Training offering for the Hall County Juvenile Court from Georgia. 

The audience will include Juvenile Court staff, Child attorneys, Parent attorneys, Guardians Ad Litem, Judges, Law Clerks, DJJ employees, School resource officers, school counselors, social workers, and the Department of Fam and Child Services. 

Trainer: 

Kristin Scardamalia, Ph.D.