Read This List

Do you know the signs that could indicate your child is involved with a gang? You should. Here is a short list.

Has your child become suddenly secretive and aggressively rebellious?

Is your child staying out late at night or all night?

Does your child desire to wear “gangsta” clothes (oversized pants worn low on the hips, oversized shirts, oversized shoes, and neatly pressed bandanas)? Although many non-gang kids wear the gangsta look, remember, it is a gang uniform. Even if your child is not involved with gangs, wearing this type of clothing makes your child a target either for recruitment or violence.

Does your child wear a gang symbol? Religious icons, such as rosary beads and the star of David, are used by some gangs as a symbol of membership. The Nazi swastika is the symbol of white-supremacist gangs. If your child is wearing a pair of rosary beads and you are not Catholic, you should be alarmed.

Does your child show an interest in unusual pop art or gang graffiti?

If your child exhibits interest in any of the above, you should be asking your child a lot of questions.