Coalition sets sights on West Side youth

By Michael Mazzuto and Mike Provenzano

BengalNews Reporters

Just saying no isn’t enough.

Telling kids not to do something can make them want to do it anyway. Unfortunately, many adults don’t realize this until it is too late. But there’s a group of people trying to change that by a proactive approach at a critical stage in adolescents. 

The West Side Youth Development Coalition (WSYDC) was formed in 2009, at the request of the community, to develop approaches to limit the high levels of violence and gang activity on the West Side. The coalition’s other objectives include trying to change negative “social norms” and positive impacts on the environment.

In conjunction with the Buffalo Police Department, the WSYDC hosted the 18^th annual youth police academy on March 23 at Buffalo Police Headquarters on Franklin Street.  The event is part of what the WSYDC calls “enhancing enforcement” in the hope that it will create an open dialogue between police and the West Side youth community.

Kids from schools across Buffalo including six on the West Side, participated in workshops and activities on personal safety, anti-bullying, and physical fitness.  

This marks the third consecutive year in which the WSYDC co-hosted the academy.   The WSYDC was formed in 2009, at the request of the community, to develop approaches to limit the high levels of violence and gang activity on the West Side. The coalition’s other objectives include trying to change negative “social norms,” positive impacts on the environment and improving the perception of law enforcement within the community.

Robert Fink, president of the Citizens Advisory Group says the youth police academy’s main focus is to educate 7^th and 8^th graders so that they can make good life choices.

“For the kids here, the academy is also a really good introduction to the police,” Fink says.  “Many of the kids who attend the academy go on to join the Buffalo Police Explorer Scouts.”

The Explorer Scouts are a group dedicated to giving teens hands-on experience in mock law-enforcement situations.

Jonathan Lindner, coordinator for the coalition:

According to Jonathan Lindner, coordinator for the WSYDC, most negative behaviors in kids, start around 7^th or 8^th grade.  Lindner, who is also a health and wellness professor at Buffalo State College, was on-hand along with some of his students, for a presentation on healthy choices.  Lindner says that it is his unique approach that resonates with the kids.

“A lot of people talk at them, I’ve learned to talk to them,” says Lindner.  “I have a conversation with them.  I show them there is other stuff to choose.  If you show them other things, they realize you don’t have to choose things that are potentially harmful.”

Lindner included a survey when kids signed up for the academy that included what he calls “perception of harm questions” to gauge how they feel about drugs, alcohol, and their mental health.  Lindner says the survey helps him to tailor his presentation to the audience.

Lindner knows that kids on the West Side may not have the best perception of law enforcement.  He experienced his own learning curve when it came to gaining credibility with the community.

“When I first started working on the West Side, it wasn’t easy,” said Lindner.  “I had to gain trust and respect.”

Lindner says the police can’t expect to change their relationship with the youths when their approach doesn’t change.

“The kids will engage, it just depends how on you actually engage them,” says Lindner.  “The tough love stuff- that doesn’t fly.”

Lindner is also helping build the foundation for the future leaders of the West Side community.  Many of his students also made presentations at the academy and hope to continue their involvement with the West Side after graduation.

“You see more of a positive attitude from West Side students and the kids we are interacting with,” said Louis DeAngelo, a senior in Buffalo State’s health and wellness program.  “The idea that there is actually something they can do besides being stuck on the West Side and not being able to go anywhere or do anything.”