Wheaton Plaza

One place here I kick it at is Wheaton Plaza Mall. It's an urban ghetto type mall. Just last week Olivia and Tony Yayo from G-Unit did an autograph signing at one of the shoe stores there. Unfortunately, on the same day of the autograph signing, there was a stabbing at the Target store I go to just about every day.

This stabbing involved members of the gang MS-13 and now there is an even bigger uproar about the gangs that are in this area. I guess they got solutions or whatever, but my thing is, what is up with the prevalence of gang culture in this area?

Today I went to the mall and I noticed some dudes who were I guess "Bloods". You know, the Bloods street gang based in LA. They were in the mall, they had red on, they had the rags in their back pockets, they were teens. Im like thinking, "What the f?" Do they really know the magnitude of what they are getting into? I guess it isn't much for kids to dress a certain way, but if there is a fad involving dressing up like a blood but not being a blood, I haven't heard about it.

It does make sense in that I guess the MS-13 and other Salvadorian gangs are getting really overbearing here. They are recruiting so much that the incident I mentioned that happened at the mall was due to the fact that some kids didn't want to be down with the gang. I wonder if these other kids dressing up like Bloods are doing that because they are reacting to the MS-13's prominence by taking on the surface aspects of a powerful black gang? Now, with all the information on the net, you can find information on the gangs. You can know everything from the history to the names of rappers former gang sets. However, anybody can wear red and put a red rag in their back pocket, but do these kids really know what this type of life style involves?

Not trying to say that there is even any value in such knowledge. Im also not trying to say that I'd even begin to try to deprogram these kids from The GAME's latest CD or anything. I guess that would be ideal. I'm not speaking for just myself but for everybody else too; we gotta put our heads out and get these kids on a positive track. We got to let them know that trying to emulate the latest gangsta rapper or even real gangbangers is just not the way to go. The ideal path is getting your education and pursuing a career.

Yesterday I watched that movie "Belly" on BET, and it tripped me out how at the end the Minister, the character played by Benjamin Chavis of the Nation of Islam, talked about how approaching a new millenium, and our youths are caught up in selling sex, drugs, and death. The movie was made in 1998. This weekend a preacher who spoke at the church I went to spoke about how the churches just aren't making an impact in dealing with this situation, and how things in the black neighborhoods are getting worse (check out PG County Homicides Pass 100)

I just believe that we as individuals gotta do what we can to deal with it. I don't want our youths becoming gangbangers; I want them to get to become lawyers, doctors, and real leaders. I'll admit, I'm doing what I can to be part of the solution, and I will at least continue to do so. Will you?