ABSTRACT
Seven days before this symposium began, I traveled to my birthplace, Los Angeles, California, for a brief visit with my parents. While there, I frequented the neighborhoods of my youth-South Central Slauson and Eastside Compton. As I journeyed through these neighborhoods, I was reminded of the day-to-day survival strategies, I, my siblings, and several of our friends adopted to navigate these challenging terrains. Over the course of my childhood, teen, and young adult years, these neighborhoods transitioned from village-like communities to public spaces characterized by social isolation, severe economic deprivation, and a precipitous rise in gang warfare. According to prevailing pedagogic perspectives on neighborhoods and human development, these spaces would have been designated a high-risk environment for children and teens (Crane, 1991; Jencks & Mayer, 1990; Sampson, 1992; Wilson, 1987).
