[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 14, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H1745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                              {time}  1815
                AMENDMENT TO H.R. 728, BLOCK GRANTS ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Goodlatte). Under a previous order of 
the House, the gentlewoman from Texas [Ms. Jackson-Lee] is recognized 
for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE. Mr. Speaker, just a few minutes ago, some of our 
colleagues might have found a moment of joy and excitement. I 
unfortunately took a different perspective. I said I was angry when I 
came to the House floor to talk about our children and to talk about 
those who on their way home from school are solicited by gang members 
and called upon to join their gang, a gang of violence, homicide, 
burglary, theft and other criminal acts. I am angry for our children 
who likewise go into these gangs and are made to do gang initiation 
rites which have caused the loss of a little one thrown out of the 
window of a housing development by some young gang members. And, yes, 
at a birthday party in my city where they did not finish the party to 
blow out the candles, they called an ambulance to take a lifeless body. 
Yet we could vote for H.R. 728 and not include in it the kind of 
response that we needed to prevent gang violence, to teach our children 
that there is a better way.
  Mr. Speaker, escalating violence against and by children and youth is 
no coincidence. It is the cumulative and convergent manifestation of a 
range of serious and too-long-neglected problems: Epidemic child and 
family poverty, increasing economic inequality, a lack of understanding 
of racial differences, pervasive drug and alcohol abuse, violence in 
our homes, and popular culture and growing numbers of out-of-wedlock 
births and divorces. Without question, these are problems that need to 
be addressed. Unfortunately, though, the piece of legislation that we 
have before us that was just voted on, H.R. 728, does more to 
contribute to these problems than it does to help them.
  Many of my Republican colleagues do not see crime prevention measures 
as realistic tools for combating the increase of youthful violence. In 
fact, they cited some 200 programs. I do not know what they are talking 
about, when H.R. 728 repeals all of the programs that we have that 
would deal with gang violence and resistance to gangs. We cannot, 
however, ignore the numbers that show us the frightening increase in 
youthful criminal perpetration and victimization. We have not valued 
millions of our children's lives and so they do not value ours in a 
society in which they have no social or economic stake, no role models, 
no one to come and share with them the values of this Nation. Their 
neglect, abuse, and marginalization by many of their caretakers, 
schools, communities, and our Nation turn them first to and against 
each other in gangs and then, yes, against a society that would rather 
imprison them than educate them.
  This legislation that I proposed would continue to provide funding 
for various crime prevention programs for at-risk youth which educate 
our children against violence and gang violence. Both our children and 
our communities need these prevention programs to provide alternatives 
to crime. Specifically my amendment would have set aside a portion of 
the block grant funding for each year for the three youth crime 
prevention programs. Why not our children? Urban recreation grants, 
gang resistance and education training, and residential educational 
programs for at-risk youth. These programs provide children with 
positive alternatives, skills, hope, and a safe place just to be 
children.
  Contrary to our arguments, the GREAT Program [gang resistance and 
education training program] was not created by last year's crime bill 
and it is not a grant program. It is a cooperative agreement that has 
been funded previously by Congress and needed the extra added funding 
to succeed.
  To further contribute to the success of the program, the agency 
involved puts substantial resources of its own in training as well as 
provides community financial assistance in operating the program. As a 
result, over 400,000 children will have been exposed to gang resistance 
education.
  A National Institute of Justice-sponsored survey of metropolitan 
police departments in the 79 largest U.S. cities showed that in the 
spring of 1992 all but 7 were troubled by gangs, as were all but 5 
departments in the 43 smaller cities. In the 110 jurisdictions 
reporting gangs, the survey found that over the previous 12-month 
period, there were 249,324 gang members, 4,881 gangs, 46,000 gang-
related crimes, and a staggering 1,072 gang-related homicides. Does 
that keep our neighborhoods safe? Does that protect our children, our 
seniors in the neighborhood?
  Gang-related violence is growing. The police commissioner of Boston 
said the GREAT Program is great. There are many programs that will 
support our young people, the urban recreation programs, to keep them 
in parks after late hours.
  I say, Mr. Speaker, are we supporting our children? If we are, then 
we need to put prevention, police, and prisons. We need to ensure that 
our children find a better way.


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