Voices from the Streets

This book consists of a series of chapters, one per "former gang member," with each individual telling his own story; brief biographical sketches and photographs are provided for each.There is a good balance of ethnicities here: Chicano, black, white, and Asian-Americans, male and female. Indeed, the mix extends to ages. One former gang member is only thirteen years old. The testimonies are chilling, the thirteen year old "Elena" (pseudonym) tells us "you can get guns given to you for free. They're stolen-- they'll just give them to you." The short narratives do not glamorize violence or "the life," nor are the youngsters indulging in hagiography. The testimonies are gritty, seem to be honest, and all the youngsters read as if they wanted out of life situations such as poverty, neglect, and violent homes very badly, thus gangs seemed a good alternative.I'd say this is a good resource for someone doing a report on gangs, especially if the writer needs a resource with testimony from former gang members.ken32