Local-What Should Be Done

Across the nation the government has been cutting down on after school programs, which are a big deterrent to kids who often come from broken homes or whose parents work late. What the government needs to do though is re-invest in after school programs as well as in school programs such as D.A.R.E (Drug Abuse Resistance Education). Although public school do have a D.A.R.E officer that comes in once during a child's education (usually in the fifth grade) consistent prevention and awareness needs to occur as drugs are often the gateway to gangs. The decline in gangs that this would lead to would also produce greater productivity in the classroom; in a recent survey 20% of Hawaii middle school students said that gangs at school frighten them. which also means that many of those kid would be afraid to come to school. That is why gang deterrents from an early age are so important, especially in Hawaii where communities are very closely knit and everyone has such a big influence on everyone else; if the government can eliminate gangs than children's success rates would go up substantially. And although the Hawaii Police Department has made it increasingly hard to acquire weapons including handguns, they are still relatively easy to come by on the black market. If guns can be taken out of the picture than a huge intimidating device for gangs would be lost.
Gangs are becoming more and more prevalent in Hawaii because of its location. Located between Asia and the United States Hawaii is an ideal location for drug trafficking because it is about halfway in between the two continents. Recently gang members have even been emigrating from the mainland (particularly the west coast) because of the lucrative drug trade in Hawaii. Drugs such as I.C.E and coke are easy to get hold of as is marijuana. So much so that in a survey of drug use taken in Hawaii in 1999 6.7% of those surveyed admitted to having used drugs in the last month. Additionally, the number of people being admitted to the drug rehabilitation centers in Hawaii had risen 50% between 1994 and 1999. Gangs are having a huge affect on the population of Hawaii through their drug trafficking.
The Hawaii government has taken a number of steps to minimize the affect of gangs. Arrest for the commission of substantive criminal offenses, defined by Federal or State statute, is the main mechanism used by law enforcement to prosecute youth and adult gangs. Hawaii has also made it illegal to carry concealed fire arms.
People may claim that gangs don’t affect their lives too much in Hawaii because they live in parts of the island where they claim there “are no gangs”. But, gangs have infiltrated all parts of our small island; of the approximately 1.2 million people living in Hawaii, 1,500 of them are gang members belonging to some 140 gangs. Still not convinced that gangs have affected all the people living in Hawaii? Than consider that gangs have indirectly affected every tax paying person living in Hawaii. The state government spends about $400 million dollars (of tax payer’s money) each year on drug related problems. That $400 million is only on drug related problems induced by gangs, and does not include money spent on police units dedicated to gangs, or medical costs because of gang violence. Half of all arrests made last year were due to drugs that gangs have smuggled into Hawaii. That money could be spent on infrastructure (filling in the billions of potholes on Oahu) or a number of other problems plaguing Hawaii.
Should the local and National show little interest in the gang activities in Hawaii than the problem will continue to grow and will affect the mainland more and more over time. Thankfully though, juvenile crimes have been going down steadily in Hawaii over the past five years, which could be an indication that gangs are having less of an influence of kids in Hawaii today than they were in previous decades. Should this trend continue than it is likely that the number of gangs will decrease. Unfortunately, overall crime has risen in the past three years. Having such a small community gangs and drugs can tear us apart and have a huge impact on how we live, thus the government needs to step up its enforcement of ports and immigration. People can have an affect on gangs too, simply by emailing the state government and letting them know that gangs are a serious problem and need taking care of. People can also help out individuals who have drug problems by contacting drug agencies that specialize in rehabilitation.
People can also contact the Governor by emailing her questions or concerns.