Oklahoma: Gang Prevention Partnership

An Oklahoma City Police Department program is using the arts to stop kids from joining gangs. Through a partnership with the Oklahoma Arts Council (OAC), the Oklahoma City Police Department’s gang prevention program—Family Awareness and Community Teamwork (FACT)—has added arts activities as positive alternatives for local youth at two Oklahoma City community centers. The program aims to intervene with at-risk youth before they become embedded in local gangs.

In addition to receiving safe space, mentoring and regular meals, FACT participants enjoy a variety of creative activities such as discussing gang-related movies and music, storytelling workshops, poetry writing, and hands-on film and video production classes. Other activities have included appearances by Oklahoma University football players and a mock trial for hip-hop music, with youths acting out the prosecutor and defender roles. OAC provides support in the form of grant funding, program planning and program oversight. To learn more about the collaboration, contact OAC Director of Arts Education Michael Eddens.