Ask teens from any gang in Lowell, MA: who can
you trust? “It’s the 
streetworkers,
man—from UTEC.” United
Teen Equality Center (UTEC) staff has earned
respect for peacemaking on the streets and for
hot programs that offer skills in everything from
video production, computer repair, and break dancing
to how to find a job or stand up to an abusive
boyfriend.
UTEC Streetworkers are on call 24/7 for crisis
intervention and their peace summits have actually
nurtured friendships between rival gang leaders.
Gaining the confidence of key gang members, the “shot
callers,” takes time but often results in
shattering stereotypes. (Read “The
Courage to Make Peace” in the Storybook
section.)
UTEC Streetworkers meet teens on their own turf,
whether it’s a block ruled by a Southeast
Asian or Latino gang or on city basketball and
volleyball courts. After building individual relationships,
Streetworkers guide at-risk youth towards UTEC
sports and cultural arts programs and community
resources such as mental health and primary care
services.
See "UTEC-in
Full Effect," a
teen-made video glimpse into the world of UTEC
using Windows Media Player. (Download this free
viewing software here.)
Avoiding a crisis
UTEC lost their home base when a local
church expanded 
activities
and would no longer rent its parish hall. A new
place had to be affordable and close to the gang-neutral
territory downtown. They found a temporary spot
in a retail area, but storeowners complained
in the press and city council about the number
of teens now congregating near their businesses.
While the location seemed problematic, community
praise for their youth development work was widespread.
More than 20 different agencies showed up to vouch
for UTEC at a city council subcommittee hearing.
Soon UTEC staff, board and civic leaders turned
the controversy into an opportunity to engage community
support in their search for a new building. Top
city officials have been instrumental in actively
working with UTEC staff in identifying appropriate
buildings as a location for UTEC's permanent home.
(See Best
Practices to learn how community and media
relations helped UTEC rise above the criticism.)
Newspaper headlines
How did the local newspaper cover UTEC’s
in-your-face activities and the tempest
over their location? The Lowell
Sun and the Boston
Globe published 18 balanced stories over
two years including: “Ex-gang
members join against violence," “Loitering
teens are hurting us” and “Stats show
teens not causing rise in crime—police say
business owners claims unjustified.”
Finally
on January 22, 2005 the Sun published
a glowing editorial supporting UTEC and their need for a new building: “Time
for tolerance.” Read
the press coverage on the UTEC website.
Happy Ending
In 2006 UTEC purchased a church building in an excellent location: just outside the retail area, inside the city's gang-neutral zone, and walking distance form the high school. the City of Lowell provided partial funding.
The Streetworker Program was nominated by the Theodore
Edson Parker Foundation of Boston, MA
and received a four-year matching grant from
LIFP in 2003.
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