When one is asked to characterize the actions of a gang-member there are obviously certain elements which would show up on any person's list, such as violence and vandalism. As the first point needs no explanation, I wish to address the second. You see, it is quite easy to view a site of the city which has been "tagged" by various different styles of graffiti and say it has been "vandalized." One can also just simply say a place has been "vandalized" when it's outer appearance is scarred by unwanted or ugly elements, such as broken windows, soiled foundations, or posters of propaganda. Eventually, when one begins to notice a specific pattern of vandalization, it becomes quite easy to associate such acts with the people who do them. Instead of calling them individuals we begin to ascribe them the name of "vandals" for their association with this violence of place.
If we are lucky, this is where the associative process will end. The vandal will be apprehended sooner or later and this violence will end. It is when this hooligan is left to his own devices for far too long that a problem begins to develop. He/she may find a kinship with other members of his/her kind. A group of vandals may group together and begin a process of widespread vandalization, attacking any number of locations throughout the city, their violence-of-place only kept in check by the number of members in the group and how little they can accomplish at any one time.
The possibility for greater danger is not absent from this situation, however. When the group eventually becomes too large to control how long will it be before one vandal chooses to scar a human instead of a building? The line separating a group of vandals and a gang is indeed a thin red one, and it can be crossed with only a modicum of effort. Violence of place is not so different from violence of man in that they both show such reckless disregard for society, its laws, and its people. How many times has a brick been thrown at a building; how many windows are broken by baseball bats; how many mailboxes are intentionally run over? How easily could you mistake vandalism for gang activity if these hooligans were vandalizing people instead of objects?
I can think of one particular group of people today which is exhibiting startling similarity to this criminal evolution. To illustrate, I present this citation from 24 Hours newspaper (Tuesday, February 26th edition):
There has been a noticeable spike in ... vandalism. The Omega countdown clock, Premier Gordon Campbell’s riding office, a “Welcome to Vancouver” sign near Hastings Park and several Royal Bank of Canada branches have been recent targets.
I have kept the most important words of this phrase intentionally absent, just so my readers may be able to imagine how vandal-like this group's actions are, how so like any other band of petty hooligans. Though for any keen reader of the papers you will have no doubt already filled in the blanks; however, for those of you less inclined to daily reading let me continue with my final damnable piece of evidence, this time, a picture:
Yes, yes, it is the Anti Poverty Committee to which I am referring. This ragtag bunch of vandals have progressively been upping the ante on their antics sine day one, and for the most part their tireless tirades and voluminous vandalizations have been only just tolerable. As Vancouver's hosting of the 2010 Olympic Games draws nearer, however, their actions have escalated to outright threats against key member of the Olympic Committee. The picture above is the epitome of that conclusion: a profusion of large posters sprout up around downtown Vancouver, each bearing the ominous decree, "Dead IOC Prez." Upon further examination, one also notices a grand serpent, bearing all the markers of Olympic authority along its body, being deftly beheaded by a masked ninja with a horde of cheering individuals behind him.
This is where the APC feels out the boundaries outlined by that thin red line. Before this, they were just a large group of humbled hooligans; however, now they have begun to show so many of the trademark signs of a group that is going out of control. As I have said, it would only take one violent act for the entire group to finish their criminal evolution, and posters like this are the undeniable precursor to that act. Why else would Vancouver's finest be out in full force on the exact date and time of International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge’s arrival?
Let us be both practical and serious. No one would take such a threat lightly, and assuredly no one would stand idle in light of its existence. On the contrary, they would certainly act. My greatest concern, however, is which party is doing the acting? The Police are doing all they can just to stand there and protect the head of that black serpent; but what actions are the Anti Poverty Committee likely to take next? If the pattern is anything to go by, God forbid, then I expect the next threat will not be left unfulfilled.
We are witnessing the evolution of a gang. You cannot deny that the Anti Poverty Committee has taken drastic measures to communicate its point to the city; and while that goal is an admirable one, what will their goals be known as once a member of the Olympic Committee truly is assassinated like some base animal? Look at this group of people. What do you see? Do you see a responsible organization, or simply organized crime?
If we are lucky, this is where the associative process will end. The vandal will be apprehended sooner or later and this violence will end. It is when this hooligan is left to his own devices for far too long that a problem begins to develop. He/she may find a kinship with other members of his/her kind. A group of vandals may group together and begin a process of widespread vandalization, attacking any number of locations throughout the city, their violence-of-place only kept in check by the number of members in the group and how little they can accomplish at any one time.
The possibility for greater danger is not absent from this situation, however. When the group eventually becomes too large to control how long will it be before one vandal chooses to scar a human instead of a building? The line separating a group of vandals and a gang is indeed a thin red one, and it can be crossed with only a modicum of effort. Violence of place is not so different from violence of man in that they both show such reckless disregard for society, its laws, and its people. How many times has a brick been thrown at a building; how many windows are broken by baseball bats; how many mailboxes are intentionally run over? How easily could you mistake vandalism for gang activity if these hooligans were vandalizing people instead of objects?
I can think of one particular group of people today which is exhibiting startling similarity to this criminal evolution. To illustrate, I present this citation from 24 Hours newspaper (Tuesday, February 26th edition):
There has been a noticeable spike in ... vandalism. The Omega countdown clock, Premier Gordon Campbell’s riding office, a “Welcome to Vancouver” sign near Hastings Park and several Royal Bank of Canada branches have been recent targets.
I have kept the most important words of this phrase intentionally absent, just so my readers may be able to imagine how vandal-like this group's actions are, how so like any other band of petty hooligans. Though for any keen reader of the papers you will have no doubt already filled in the blanks; however, for those of you less inclined to daily reading let me continue with my final damnable piece of evidence, this time, a picture:
Yes, yes, it is the Anti Poverty Committee to which I am referring. This ragtag bunch of vandals have progressively been upping the ante on their antics sine day one, and for the most part their tireless tirades and voluminous vandalizations have been only just tolerable. As Vancouver's hosting of the 2010 Olympic Games draws nearer, however, their actions have escalated to outright threats against key member of the Olympic Committee. The picture above is the epitome of that conclusion: a profusion of large posters sprout up around downtown Vancouver, each bearing the ominous decree, "Dead IOC Prez." Upon further examination, one also notices a grand serpent, bearing all the markers of Olympic authority along its body, being deftly beheaded by a masked ninja with a horde of cheering individuals behind him.
This is where the APC feels out the boundaries outlined by that thin red line. Before this, they were just a large group of humbled hooligans; however, now they have begun to show so many of the trademark signs of a group that is going out of control. As I have said, it would only take one violent act for the entire group to finish their criminal evolution, and posters like this are the undeniable precursor to that act. Why else would Vancouver's finest be out in full force on the exact date and time of International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge’s arrival?
Let us be both practical and serious. No one would take such a threat lightly, and assuredly no one would stand idle in light of its existence. On the contrary, they would certainly act. My greatest concern, however, is which party is doing the acting? The Police are doing all they can just to stand there and protect the head of that black serpent; but what actions are the Anti Poverty Committee likely to take next? If the pattern is anything to go by, God forbid, then I expect the next threat will not be left unfulfilled.
We are witnessing the evolution of a gang. You cannot deny that the Anti Poverty Committee has taken drastic measures to communicate its point to the city; and while that goal is an admirable one, what will their goals be known as once a member of the Olympic Committee truly is assassinated like some base animal? Look at this group of people. What do you see? Do you see a responsible organization, or simply organized crime?
~~Seven Tense
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