Gang Related Crime Rate Slashed By This Chicago-Based Program

A Chicago-based program is reducing crime rates by encouraging conversations between youth groups. "Becoming A Man" is a program that allows gang members to sit together and calmly talk about their issues.

The program is run by the non-profit organization Youth Guidance that allows students to attend group sessions targeted to practicing more conscious decision-making processes. Adolescent males are taught how to slow down decision-making processes to improve a student's ability to make appropriate judgments during certain situations.

A study in 2008 revealed that many homicides in Chicago youth are due to impulsive behavior, access to guns and over-reaction to aspects in their social environment, according to the University of Chicago. "Becoming A Man" targets at-risk boys studying in Chicago public schools, according to Huffington Post.

Boys who participate in the program become more willing to talk about their personal lives and emotional vulnerabilities, according to John Wolf, senior manager from the University of Chicago's Crime Lab. Many students involved in the program are in poverty, reside in dangerous neighborhoods or are constantly surround by violence.

Wolf explains that the program exposes the same fears and anxieties of the other kid just sitting across them. "It's a human condition to show those things and it's a common experience," said Wolf.

Even just days after one group killed a member of the other group, the two groups of people were able to sit down and have a conversation, according to Wolf. Wolf explains that the two groups did not mention whether they knew who did it; instead they talked about ways on how to find peace and make sure it did not escalate any further.

Becoming A Man, however, does not tell students what to do or how to behave. The program encourages students to carefully consider their decisions before acting.

A 50 percent decline in violent crime arrests were reported between 2013 and 2015 from the program's 2,000 participants as compared to a control group. Every dollar invested in the program is also projected to return more than $30 in societal gain due to crime reduction. In addition, the program also increases graduates rates by 19 percent and therefore adds to long-term economic gains.