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KEAN PARENTS WARNED OF RISE IN GANG ACTIVITY

March 26, 2001 — At a PTSA meeting held at Ivanna Eudora Kean High School Monday evening, police officers from the School Resource Bureau warned parents that gang activity in V.I. schools is on the rise. "There is a new virus in our schools," announced officer Tracy Richardson, an 11-year police veteran specially trained in school safety. Notorious gangs such as the Bloods and the Crips have now found their way into our community and into local schools, he reported.
"It used to be that there were just neighborhood gangs, fighting over turf," he said. Today's gang members are killing each other just because they belong to different gangs, Richardson said.
"Females are also getting involved," he added. As a rite of passage, girls must have sex with male members of the gang.
As parents gasped at the news, officers advised them to know their children's friends and to check school bags every morning for gang-related paraphernalia. Items to look for include bandanas and beaded jewelry that gang members often wear to associate themselves with gangs.
The Bloods are known to wear red and often don baseball caps with the letter B in red. The Crips prefer blue and the Yankees baseball cap.
Gangs use a variety of other ways to identify themselves, including hand signs and wearing pants in such a way that either the left leg (Bloods) or the right leg (Crips) is exposed to the knee. "If they tell you it's just the style, don't believe it," warned Richardson.
Graffiti in the schools provides useful information to enforcement officers. Richardson asked school administrators to take photos of any graffiti and record names found in the writing before removing it. Graffiti often contains clues about crimes that have been committed or are being planned.
According to Richardson, children join gangs for attention, power and protection. Older members of the gangs often recruit new members by buying them gifts, such as expensive sneakers and clothing, Richardson said.
The PTSA president, the Rev. Gladstone Hazel, and Kean principal Sinclair Wilkinson expressed disappointment that more parents did not attend the meeting. No more than 25 parents and a lone teacher showed up. The high school has a student body of 925 children.
Sgt. Elvin Fahie, SRB acting commander, told parents, "You're responsible to correct and direct your child. Don't excuse yourself, but commit yourself." He asked parents to be mothers and fathers to all of the children in the community. "We have a chance to stop this, " he said.
Next week officers will meet with parents and teachers in St. John.

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