Just all looks fucked up, very depressing that youngsters seem to be pushed down that route, feel they have nothing else but to join gangs etc. All his life in front of him and that happens.
13 and out with a gun at 2.30am.
Spot on here Fear, the lady worked for a company for 2 years who deal with kids in these circumstances and it is not as simple as "make sure they are home" etc.
Kids at 12 and 13 are groomed by older men in gangs. Starts off super innocent go to the store and get me a coke, keep the change and the change is $20. $20 is a lot to a 12 year old. Then its run this package across the street for $50. Even at 15 or 16 they might only get $100 but for them that's new Jordans or a computer game, so on.
Parents in these situations are often working 2 jobs. Some of these people are so poor. I remember one woman who was raising two kids, working two jobs and she still needed assistance. They got her a new apartment and she was still having to go a secondhand free furniture store. A lot of these are in desperate situations.
Some kids come from really good homes its just the poverty and parents being unable to supervise them all the time. Once the gang gets its grips into you its really difficult to get out. The gangs come after you if you try to leave. Theres been families who move borough or even move state and they get a random knock on the door one night saying "Brandon needs to come home". Its dangerous. Some kids totally lose their way, there was one story of a family who moved to Jamaica but their son left in the middle of the night to go back. They bought him a flight and he left without telling his family.
Eventually the cycle repeats, the kids grow up and then they groom kids to work underneath them. My GF actually met one of them once because he understood the dire situation he was stuck in. He was trapped but the pressure from the top meant he had to try and bring in kids too. He is made responsible for kids who try to leave too so its a vicious cycle. You can't just leave.
The girls is a whole other story but young girls get trafficked essentially. Similar stuff, younger guy gives her money and brings her out for drinks and stuff she's too young for. They trick the girls into making them love them. Eventually thru the abusive tactics it turns into "if you loved me you would sleep with my friend". And that's how they end up being prostitutes and getting pimped out.
Its so easy to say "make different decisions", "where are the parents", "just leave", "just say no" and "make sure you know where your kids are". Its all so easy but if it actually was so many wouldn't be in these situations. I don't think we can fathom how dire and depressing these situations are.