Over the last couple of years, the last six months especially, there has been an increase in ‚Äúincidents‚Äù that have been classified as ‚Äúallegedly‚Äù gang-related. We hear it out on the street – we all do – we see it every day – it’s hard to get away from it when you live in a densely populated urban setting such as this.

Between today and the range of years from 1950 to 1990 is the time that we (meaning the over 40 crowd) knew that we didn’t have to bring a knife to school in the fourth or fifth grade. We knew that we didn’t have to carry a gun and put it in someone’s face – anyone’s face – to be an accepted member of the community.

Our concept of ‚Äúgang‚Äù ranged from ‚ÄúElvis‚Äù and ‚ÄúFrankie and Annette‚Äù movies to ‚ÄúGrease‚Äù and ‚ÄúThe Warriors‚Äù – things we identified with from movies and television over that 40-year period. Today’s young adults and frighteningly younger children play games like ‚ÄúGrand Theft Auto, San Andreas‚Äù and watch movies and TV shows based on ‚Äúgangsters‚Äù and MTV Cribs.

Hey, don’t get us wrong, we all know a gangster or two, and way more gangster wannabes – this is Somerville, this is where we live – but, kids aren’t in school to promote ‚Äúgang life‚Äù like it was a religion.

This is Somerville – where we have a wonderful, rich environment of people from all walks of life – not a blighted community that thrives on crime, drugs and high drama like any episode of ‚ÄúThe Wire‚Äù would have you believe. This isn’t Baltimore, East St. Louis or Compton for Christ’s sake.

The health and safety of our students in our public schools as a body should be above and beyond the civil liberties of any one student, period. Communities like Haverhill, Everett, Fall River, Brockton and Boston (to some extent) are dealing with placing policies in effect which introduce a harsh reality to those students who wish to disrupt the learning environment of the whole via anything “gang related.”

If a community like Peabody or Westwood wants to take the chance and roll the dice and not put a policy in place to deal with these types of issues – good luck. We deserve better. Our students deserve better.

In Somerville we need something strong – something fashioned from a solid working relationship with the Somerville Public Schools, the School Committee, the Mayor’s Office, the Police Department and the District Attorney – something that will make a statement that we don’t want this type of activity in our public schools. If ‚Äúkids‚Äù want to act like adults and be members of a gang – let’s treat them exactly that way then and kick them the hell out of our schools.

This community needs a zero tolerance policy in place in our public schools Рin short, anything, even slightly hinted at that happens and is “gang” related Рshould be cause for expulsion, period, end of story Рno age limit and no age minimum. And if this community is courageous enough to take this stand, it better be prepared to defend the health and safety of our students as a whole when the NAACP or some wacko pro-bono attorney files a civil rights lawsuit Рbecause it will happen eventually.

A policy is only good as long as you’re willing to go to all the way with it.