POLICE FIGHT GANG RECRUITMENT IN SCHOOLS

In North End. Pilot Project Gets $500,000 Grant

In the world of street gangs, elementary and high schools often serve
as recruitment centres.

Gang members troll schoolyards, seeking vulnerable candidates as young
as 10 or 12 to serve as future drug runners or underage prostitutes.

The key to warding off a youthful transgression that can end up
ruining a life is to demonstrate that better choices exist, police say.

"We try to give children the tools and the self-confidence so that
when gang members approach them, they'll know what to do," said
Montreal police Constable Stephane Eid, who has worked on anti-gang
programs for the past six years in the Bordeaux-Cartierville borough
in north-end Montreal.

To promote those types of initiatives, Public Security Minister
Stockwell Day announced yesterday in Montreal the federal government
has earmarked $10 million for community-based crime prevention
programs in Quebec "that support youth at risk and help to keep
Quebec's streets and schools safe."

A rise in street-gang related crime and a rash of home invasions has
raised local awareness of the issues, said Jacques Dupuis, Quebec's
public security minister.

"We want the public to see that we are aware of the problem, and we
know that they expect us to take action."

Parents also bear a burden, he noted. "The best advice I can give is
often: Listen to your children."

While he acknowledged youth crime was posing a growing problem, he
said only three per cent of prisoners in Quebec's provincial jail
system were found to be involved with street gangs.

However, eight of the 30 homicides on the island of Montreal that had
occurred by late September are believed to be linked to street gangs.

The new funding will go toward prevention programs that focus on
community involvement, including local social workers, schools and
police.

As an example, Eid points to programs at the Cartierville-Bordeaux
youth centre that offer courses in how to be a disc jockey.

"If we can teach them something that they can be proud of, they're
less likely to be coerced by gang members," he said.

A four-year pilot project where counsellors will work full time at
eight Bordeaux-Cartierville schools to study bullying issues and help
teachers, parents and students is another example of new initiatives
designed to nip youth problems in the bud.

The program, part of a major research program by three universities,
was awarded $500,000 in funding by the federal government.