Grassroots Activism in Gang Intervention Programs

Vicky Linsey, director of Project Cry No More, knows first-hand the pain and anguish of losing a child to gang-violence.  On November 9, 1989, Vicky's son was shot and killed by an L.A. gang member who is still at large.  As a mother who's son's father was also killed by gang warfare, Ms. Linsey has used her faith as the cornerstone of her strength.  "My whole life is about faith," says Vicky.  If it were not for her faith, she would have lost hope.

"The hardest thing is the murder of your child," states Vicky while recalling the son she lost.  Although it has been over a decade since the murder of her teenager, she still feels the void in her life as she explains that "murder and pain does not have a certain time [frame], it's forever.

The pain of her loss motivated her to continue providing gang intervention and prevention services through Project Cry No More.  This organization helps the victim's families cope with the bleak reality of death resulting from gang-violence.  The counseling and support services Vicky gives to victim's families, primarily the mothers, is her way of giving back to the community -- a service that was not available to her when she went through the same ordeal. Vicky recalls having to deal with the insensitivity of the police as well as hospital staff, whom she says did not help her cope with the situation in a respectful manner.

Project Cry No More is just one of the many grassroots organizations tackling gang-violence in south Los Angeles.

Harry Warren, a former gang member, heads Unity T.W.O., a gang intervention agency that works directly with gangs to mediate peaceful solutions to gang-related disputes.  Harry's main goal is to "stop the violence" rising in his neighborhoods.

Mr. Warren is collaborating with Vicky and other groups to combat the high number of deaths resulting from gang-violence.  They have formed the Cease Fire Committee, "a coordinated strategy to reduce gang activity...[and] ensure safe and healthy communities," according to a flier citing their objective.

These groups receive little to no funding for the work they perform in reducing gang-related behavior.  It is not the money but the passion and personal commitment that drives these community members to work with one another and stop the killings that are taking the lives of the urban youth.  

These community members see their grassroots efforts as a way of putting an end to a large problem that police and local political leaders have failed to mitigate.  Many are tired of the ill-mannered response of the city and feel the need to take action into their own hands.