Reply #29: I wish I knew what to say here.... [View All]

My respect and admiration for you knows no bounds. I personally am so far beyond too chicken to even think of going into that kind of school to try to make a difference (not that I'm a teacher anyway). You are an inspiration and an incredible blessing to the lives of your students and to those of us you share your knowledge with.

And what you say is so sad and, given your experience, so believable. That the Crips could be even more damaging to the lives of African-Americans than the Klan is just awful. It would have broken the hearts of Martin Luther King Jr. and of all the civil rights workers in the '50s and '60s (and beyond) that such a thing would come to pass, but it has, in so many neighborhoods around the country. Of course it's because of the legacy of the Klan that minority kids are in the position they're in, which makes them vulnerable to the effects of gangs. But that doesn't make what gang leaders are doing right now okay.