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We're All in the Same Gang
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Local gang activity doesn't make the papers much anymore but the Crips and Bloods are still here. Maybe we've just grown accustomed to gang warfare as a part of our daily lives. Maybe we've just gotten good at hiding the problem. Maybe it's now just a part of our culture.
That doesn't stop us from wondering about what Laura Bush is going to do as our newly appointed gang czar to deal with the myriad of problems in the inner-city that leads to the proliferation of gangs. What does Laura Bush know about urban malaise? The folks of Pennsylvania (her first stop in her war on gangs was Philly)don't think she's up for the job. Earl Ofari Hutchinson thinks the problem isn't really Laura Bush, it's that President Bush rarely funds the big programs he touts with the money necessary to really make them work. In fact, this current plan only provides about a million dollars in funding for each state per year to deal with the problem.
LAist is less concerned with these debates about funding and the relavency of Laura Bush. We're too busy placing bets with our friends on how long it will take before there is a scandalous headline about the obviously red colored Bloods getting more support than their blue hued rivals, the Crips.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
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