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Youth Communication helps marginalized youth develop their full potential through reading and writing, so that
they can succeed in school and at work and contribute to their communities. [more]
Our Magazines
Crime (46 found)
Charlene gives into peer pressure from her friends to cut school, drink, and smoke. When they are arrested, she has a change of heart. (full text)
The author meets a guy she really likes and they start going out. Then he plans a “surprise.” (full text)
The author joined a gang and was sentenced to a juvenile detention facility. The complete loss of freedom convinced her to seek success in school rather than the streets. (full text)
Desmin is inspired by the biography of the late Stanley "Tookie" Williams, executed for murdering a family. Desmin is fascinated by Tookie's gang past yet he also hopes to renounce violence and fly straight like Tookie did on death row. (full text)
Catherine is brutally attacked by a girl named Sara, suffering facial fractures as a result. None of the friends they have in common will reveal Sara's full name, so the police can't find her. Catherine wants Sara locked up, not out of revenge, but so she can change her behavior.
Despite a shooting outside her apartment that endangers her aunt, DeAnna's family does not report the incident to the police. "Snitching" goes against the unwritten code of living in the hood—not only will you lose respect from the community, but you could become a target for retaliation.
Three teen inmates from a secure detention center write about how they ended up there, and where they hope to go.
New brain research confirms what the writer knows from personal experience—teens have lower impulse control than adults.
Chimore wants to have a good credit history because she's about to age out of foster care. Then she finds out that her identity has been stolen and fraudulent credit card accounts opened in her name. (full text)
BitTorrent is the new Napster—a method of quickly and stealthily obtaining copyrighted music, movies, games, and software for free. The writer uses it as a convenient and free way to get the movies and music he wants, even though it's illegal to download copyrighted material. (full text)
When he arrives in the U.S. from Russia, Daniel turns to drugs and crime to alleviate his loneliness.
The writer describes life at Riker’s Island jail, where he spent eight and a half months.
Teens in a youth leadership program describe the humiliations of the juvenile justice system and how they hope to change their lives.
Mariah shows how foster care, and her search for a sense of belonging, led her into trouble with the law.
The writer is only 12 when she starts going out with Tony, 19. Eventually he becomes so abusive that she seeks an order of protection.
Juanita profiles Josue A., 17, who describes his efforts to straighten out his life after being arrested for a mugging.
Norman isn’t proud to admit it, but he was once a world-class shoplifter. Therapy helps him overcome the addiction.
The murder of a gay Latino man in Queens by three teenagers prompts Melissa to investigate the reasons behind gay bashing. She finds two powerful influences leading to violence: young people's fears of their own homosexual feelings and society's hatred of gays.
Grismaldy's 20-year-old cousin David is shot to death on a Bronx street corner and everyone has a different version of what happened. A suspect goes to trial but gets acquitted, and Grismaldy feels hopeless in knowing that David's killer is walking the streets.
The writer has been shoplifting, off and on, since she was seven. The writer's mother was a thief and her father had multiple addictions, yet they expected her to be perfect. The writer thinks she steals out of a need to punish herself and rebel against her parents.
Sheela interviews two young people who turned away from lives of crime and now make motivational presentations to other youth.
The author describes how having a gun and acting stupid got his friend killed one night and why he'll never make the same mistake.
Kenyetta's first year in foster care is a turbulent one: she's constantly getting high, drinking, and fighting. Transferred to her ninth group home, Kenyetta expects to be kicked out once again, but a friendship with a resident named Kathy helps change her outlook and behavior.
When a social worker threatens to put Shawan, 14, into foster care because his family can't control him, he runs away from home, lives on the streets, and falls into a life of crime. But when Shawan gets arrested, he finds he can't run from his painful past.
The author presents a less-than-convincing argument for why he needs to carry a gun, and acknowledges, somewhat insincerely, that having a gun can get you into trouble.
Michael visits Thomas Jefferson HS, where a 15-year-old killed two fellow students, and tries to get some answers.
The author recounts how, mad at his girlfriend for dumping him, he joined a group of friends and brutally attacked another teenager with a hammer and bottles. Later he was filled with remorse.
Adrian interviews a girl who watched her friend Maribel get stabbed to death on the subway home from school.
In a follow-up to the previous article the writer learns the fate of his former gang members.
When Carlos's friend is stabbed, his buddies go off looking for someone to hurt. At the last moment, Carlos recognizes that this is madness and opts to stay behind.
The writer spends two days with his old gang and writes about their partying, random gunplay, and seemingly suicidal lives.
In jail, Bönz meets another inmate who teaches him a lesson about accepting responsibility for one’s actions.
Identity theft is a big problem for kids in foster care; a new federal law aims to help. (full text)
The author joins a gang when she's 13, drawn to the loyalty and protection they seem to offer. Instead, the gang puts her in danger and disappears when she gets locked up. (full text)
Former gang member Sean "Dino" Johnson, who now works at a violence prevention organization, talks about how he turned his life around. (full text)
The writer joins the Bloods to gain status, respect, and love, having suffered from physical and sexual abuse in her adoptive home.
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