"Why We Support The Gang Truce and Why You Should Too!"
We actively support the gang Truce which was initiated by the Crips and Bloods of Watts, California, and has since expanded to Chicago, New York and many major cities in the U.S. We understand that the truce is not just a cessation of gang warfare, but a dynamic, militant movement for social justice. We are very proud of the young women and men who have risked so much to restore peace and unity to the streets. The colors that they have tied together in a flag of liberation will never again be separated.
We call for resistance against the mass criminalization of youth of color, especially through the use of non conviction arrest records to deny jobs to youth and young adults.
We actively oppose any and all attempts by local and national law enforcement to create and expand the "national gang data base" which is used to criminalize youth, labelling them en mass as gang members. The gang profile used by these authorities is based on racial stereotyping of youth and our communities. The police also use the "gang data base" to undermine political organizing and to attack organizations and individuals who are linking our struggles on a local, national and international level.
We call for an end to attacks on the rights of Black and Brown youth like the gang injunctions in Los Angeles that make it illegal for youth in certain parts of the city who are labelled gang members to gather in public and carry beepers. And an end to other programs and policies that criminalize our youth, such as Weed and Seed, building more prisons and jails, 3 strike laws and politically motivated beatings and shootings by law enforcement.
For ways that you can actively become involved in opposing, and working to stop, police violence against ALL people, please got to the Coalition to STOP Police Brutality page.

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