The Little Village Gang Violence Reduction Project in Chicago

problem, especially as it affected children caught in gang cross-fires. A number of suggestionswere made including activities for gang youth, adult volunteer activity, and ways to organize.At the June meeting, a small number of residents and agency representatives volunteeredto participate in a block-by-block organizing effort with the aid of police, probation, and youthworkers. A part-time (20 hours per week) clerical assistant from the La Villita CommunityChurch and a part-time organizer were to be funded through GVRP’s staff budget line to manageand coordinate the organizing process under the direction of M.L.G. and N.C. for a three-monthperiod until funding from outside sources was obtained for the new neighborhood organization.M.L.G. and the Project Coordinator began to solicit foundations and government sources toobtain funding for a long-term organizing process and program-development activities ofNAGV.Program development and contacts with gang youth were moving along with the NAGVorganizing effort in interrelated fashion. Community volunteers were assisting the youthworkers with their athletic programs for the Latin Kings at the Our Lady of Tepyac CatholicChurch’s gym, and for the Two Six the Piotrowski Park’s gym. Youth workers and the part-timeneighborhood organizer were meeting with block clubs about their gang concerns. They wereassisting gang youth with a variety of personal problems, especially finding jobs.But there was also growing tension between the part-time neighborhood organizer andM.L.G. The part-time organizer claimed that most of the residents who showed up at the Junemeeting had been members of two block clubs that he had organized. He claimed that M. L. G.and the pastor N. C. had no significant relationships with block clubs. M. L. G. raised questionsabout the reliability and honesty of the neighborhood organizer. Suddenly, the part-time7.17