Gang Culture

Further Info

This story was made by young people were not in education or employment. Participants were from Lawrence Weston and Hartcliffe. The workshop was run by BBC Outreach and The Media Trust.

Transcript

Gang culture is rife across the UK, including right here in Bristol.

Yeah, I was in a gang a few years ago and it messed my life up. I got into it because it was the only thing to do to at the time and it sort of seemed fun.

I started talking to my mate and he said come along to one night to a fight and told me I got to fight this big guy to see if I can stand up to everything and I did and then next thing I know I was with, erm out every night smoking, robbing, fighting that kind of thing.
When I was in a gang, obviously I was involved with drugs and guns so I was moved to Wales in a crisis centre which is basically in the middle of nowhere so you can’t like get any of that or get involved with any of that.

Knives are a big part of gangs nowadays because they normally hide them in their pockets  or their sock or their shoe.
When you’ve got a knife you feel safer because you don’t know who else would be carrying a knife or any other weapon.

Everyone thinks obviously all the teenagers and that are all the same, that they’re gonna be in and out of prison, they’re troublemakers and that, but they don’t actually give them a chance. They kinda just like judge them because someone else has done it.

If people took time to listen to the kids instead of like kinda not bothering, then they would understand the kid and maybe obviously all this trouble with the young kids nowadays wouldn’t be happening. If they tried to sit down with the kids and find out why they’re actually like the way they are.

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