Michael Chettleburgh on taking responsibility
He may be white he may be wealthy and he may be old enough to be your dad yet author Michael Chettleburgh insists he is the homeboy who can separate the “bullshit” from the straight dope when it comes to Calgary’s exploding gang culture.
The businessman who owns a consultancy company and an IT firm is busting out of his white collar to win the trust of small-time street gangsters across the country.
Chettleburgh has spent years collecting data and stories which are featured in his book Young Thugs: Inside the Dangerous World of Canadian Street Gangs . He will be dishing out his views along with Sgt. Gavin Walker of the Calgary Police Service in a forum being held Tuesday October 2 as part of this year’s WordFest.
While Chettleburgh’s experience of Calgary gang culture is somewhat limited he has heard the statistics on the city’s growing rate of organized crime and denies the problem is anywhere near epidemic in proportion.
“There have always been gangs in Calgary” he says. “People are more aware of them now partly because of media attention and it being a popular topic with politicians. But generally speaking it is not a huge issue.”
That’s not to say Chettleburgh who lives near Toronto doesn’t realize there is a gang problem particularly one fuelled by the demand for drugs created by Calgary’s hot economy.
He knows there have already been 26 murders in Calgary this year and has heard the stories of random stabbings and drive-by shootings. However when he sees headlines promising police crackdowns on gangs he cringes.
“We put so much emphasis on suppression policing but curbing gangs is about so much more than that” he says. “That’s not to say we should be complacent but we need to address the underlying issues. We need to develop programs that take somebody who might be a gang member or a potential member and show them the way out.”
He is a firm believer that people join gangs for serious reasons not on a whim or to emulate a popular rap star. “That’s total bullshit” he says. “Joining a gang has nothing to do with hip hop music. For the most part youths join gangs because of their socio-economic situations or family life. And there’s poverty everywhere. Nobody can tell me that Calgary is so full of opportunity that there isn’t some real poverty. For example if your opportunities are low-paying service jobs you can see why selling drugs for a lot of cash could be more appealing.”
Through determination and networking with the right people Chettleburgh has won his way into the lives of teens who have opened up to him about why they opted for gang life.
One of the devastating stories he’s collected is that of a teenager who got involved in a small-time gang and was then shot up with a speedball – a cocktail of heroine and cocaine – by a couple of older guys at a party for a laugh. Another was forced to deal drugs at age nine lured into gangster life by the promise of protection and community on his daunting social housing estate.
“It’s time we all took responsibility for what is happening — it needs to be a community effort” he says.
Chettleburg will be discussing his views at Tuesday night’s forum as well as answering questions from the crowd.
Visit wordfest.com for details.
