While gang violence has plagued the city this year, the
Hollister Gang Task Force Advisory Board will provide parents with
some helpful information Wednesday during its second annual
forum.
Hollister – While gang violence has plagued the city this year, the Hollister Gang Task Force Advisory Board will provide parents with some helpful information Wednesday during its second annual forum.
This year’s gang forum will deal specifically with parental rights, responsibility and strengthening families, Hollister police Capt. Richard Vasquez said.
The forum is free and child care will be provided. It will start at 6:30pm at the Veteran’s Memorial Building on San Benito Street and should last for two hours.
Vasquez encouraged anyone with an interest in the community to attend.
“It’s a small price to pay for making our community safer,” Vasquez said.
Gang violence has surged in Hollister since a teenager was stabbed six times in January 2007.
A 16-year-old Salinas teen was killed with a high-powered automatic rifle on a Hollister street in June. There have been 17 shootings this year, of which 15 have been drive-bys, according to police records.
The forum will provide community resources for youths in Hollister and legal information on what rights parents have to prevent their children from joining gangs. Spanish translation services will be available.
There are 19 community organizations confirmed for the event, said officer Rosie Betanio, a spokeswoman for the Hollister Police Department. The organizations, many of them youth oriented, will provide information at booths to forum attendees.
John Delgado, who works with youth intervention programs for the Hollister Youth Alliance, said the forum is a great opportunity for parents to get educated and become a part of the solution to gangs in Hollister.
Delgado said parents don’t always realize their children are involved in gangs.
“Sometimes they’ll give you a picture, and you say, ‘Wow, it’s right there in front of you,'” Delgado said.
Smaller neighborhood or home meetings are also an effective way to combat gangs, Delgado said.
In August 2004, the Hollister City Council established the Hollister Gang Task Force Advisory Board. The board held its first meeting in November 2004 and through additional meetings began to identify the contributing factors and possible solutions to the gang problem in Hollister.
The board has recognized a need for communitywide education.
