My good friend Steve Nawojczyk, a noted authority on gangs in America, says there are five basic reasons why young people will join a gang. In varying degrees these are: helpless, hopeless, homeless, hungry and hug-less. When you think about it, this is really sad, but the reality is there are millions of young people in our country today who see themselves with no hope, who are homeless, who feel helpless, who are hungry, and seldom, if ever, receive a hug from those who should have love and concern for them.
While the initiation and rules are harsh, the gang becomes their family, and in addition to these young people, society is really the loser.
While it’s a long-term solution, this is one of the reasons we feel so strongly about our “Bookcase for Every Child” project. When you can provide a young child with a personalized oak bookcase and some good children’s books, and then read to them each week, you are providing them hope and interaction with some people who really do care about them. This is a grass-roots project and is done with all volunteers, and we don’t use any tax money or government grants. A sense of deep satisfaction is our only payment.
The city of North Little Rock, Ark., sister city of our state capital, has recently started a bookcase project. Some time back I was invited to speak to their Youth Services Advisory Council. After the meeting, a lady in attendance told me about a book titled “A Framework for Understanding Poverty” by Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D. I ordered this book the following day, and it has given me more insights into the lives of these young children who come from low-income homes than anything I have ever read before. This book was so interesting and informative that I have now read it twice, and I will refer to it many times over the coming months and years.
Dr. Payne is the leading U.S. expert on the mindsets of poverty, middle class and wealth. She is uniquely qualified because of her background as a school principal, coming from a middle-class background, marrying a man from situational poverty and serving as a principal in one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Chicago.
It should be noted that there are two kinds of poverty: Generational poverty exists when an individual or family has lived in poverty for two or more generations. Situational poverty is more short-term and is brought about because of a change in circumstances such as the loss of a job, divorce, health issues or other issues that can be more quickly overcome.
